BV  1559  .G72  1910 

Gray,  Charlotte  E.  1873- 

1926. 
Experimental  object  lessons 


Experimental  Object  Lessons 


Experimental 

Object  Lessons 

Bible  Truths  Simply  Taught 


By        y 
CHARLOTTE  E.  GRAY 


New  York        Chicago        Toronto 

Fleming  H.   Revell  Company 

London       and        Edinburgh 


Copyright,  1910,  by 
FLEMING  H.   REVELL  COMPANY 


New  York:  158  Fifth  Avenue 
Chicago:  80  Wabash  Avenue 
Toronto:  25  Richmond  Street,  W. 
London:  21  Paternoster  Square 
Edinburgh:      100    Princes    Street 


Preface 

The  average  Sunday-school  teacher  works 
under  great  disadvantages.  The  majority  of 
Sunday-schools  are  not  provided  with  separate 
class  rooms,  and  the  teacher  has  to  circle  his 
scholars  around  him  in  chairs,  or,  worse  still, 
have  them  seated  before  him  in  long  pews,  so 
that  while  he  is  addressing  one  end  of  the 
class  those  at  the  other  end  cannot  hear  him 
without  an  effort.  The  average  Sunday- 
school  scholar  does  not  make  the  effort. 
Distractions  are  numerous  and  constant. 
Anything,  therefore,  which  will  help  to  keep 
the  eyes  of  the  pupils  upon  the  teacher  and 
their  minds  upon  the  lesson  is  to  be  welcomed. 

The  object  lessons  given  in  this  volume  are 
written  in  a  very  simple  manner,  as  though  a 
teacher  were  talking  with  his  class.  The 
talks  are  only  given  as  hints.  They  can  be 
remodeled  by  the  teacher  to  suit  the  lessons 
being  studied  and  to  meet  the  special  needs 
of  the  pupils.  It  is  always  best  to  try  the  ex- 
periments first  at  home  so  that  no  awkward- 
ness may  mar  the  effect  in  the  class. 

The  materials  used  are  very  inexpensive  and 
5 


6  Preface 

easy  to  procure.  In  some  cases  the  same 
things  are  used  in  several  lessons.  Most  of 
the  objects  are  of  such  a  nature  that  they  can 
be  taken  by  the  teacher  to  the  regular  church 
service  without  attracting  undue  attention. 

The  only  warning  necessary  is  in  regard  to 
the  strong  acids.  The  childrerU s  faces  should 
be  kept  well  away  from  these^  as  the  fumes 
are  strongs  and  care  should  be  taken  not  to 
spill  any  upon  the  flesh  or  clothing.  Water 
should  never  be  poured  into  acids.  When 
necessary  to  mix  the  two  (the  necessity  does 
not  arise  in  these  lessons),  always  pour  the 
acid  slowly  into  the  water. 

These  lessons  are  sent  forth  in  the  earnest 
hope  that  they  may  prove  helpful  to  many 
Sunday-school  teachers  and  junior  superin- 
tendents, and  that  they  may  serve  to  fix  firmly 
some  religious  truths  in  the  minds  of  many 
restless  boys  and  girls. 


Contents 


I. 

The  Necessity  of  Salvation     . 

9 

II. 

Steadfastness 

II 

III. 

Good  and  Bad  Company  . 

14 

IV. 

Duty  Made  Clear  . 

17 

V. 

Pardon  and  Cleansing     . 

19 

VI. 

Help  the  Weak       . 

21 

VII. 

Love,  the  Magnet  . 

23 

VIII. 

The  Message  of  the  Flowers  . 

25 

IX. 

The  Heart  for  Jesus 

•       31 

X. 

The  Folly  of  Affectation 

•       34 

XI. 

Life  After  Death  . 

.       37 

XII. 

Growing  in  Grace  . 

.       41 

XIII. 

Seed  Time  and  Harvest    . 

44 

XIV. 

Power 

.       49 

XV. 

The  Holy  Spirit     . 

•       52 

XVI. 

The  Burden  Bearer 

•       54 

XVII. 

The  Web  of  Life     . 

.       56 

XVIII. 

Environment  .... 

.      60 

XIX. 

Alcohol  and  the  Brain  . 

.       63 

XX. 

The  Light  of  the  World 

.      65 

XXI. 

Forgiveness  of  Sins 

.       69 

XXII. 

The  Water  of  Life 

•       71 

XXIII. 

God's  Way  of  Forgiving 

•       74 

XXIV. 

Affliction       .... 

.       i(^ 

XXV. 

Character  Forming 

•       79 

XXVI. 

Helpful  Christianity 
7 

.       84 

8 


Contents 


XXVII. 

Our  Spectacles     . 

.       87 

XXVIII. 

Truth  and  Falsehood  . 

93 

XXIX. 

Protection  .... 

.       96 

XXX. 

Baptism         .... 

99 

XXXI. 

Rays  of  LoviJ 

.     102 

XXXII. 

The  Changeless  One     . 

.     107 

XXXIII. 

The  Image  of  God 

.     no 

XXXIV. 

"  Sermons  In  Stones  "  . 

.     114 

XXXV. 

The  Sun  of  Righteousness     . 

.     119 

XXXVI. 

Little  Things 

.     122 

XXXVII. 

Conversion  .... 

.     126 

XXXVIII. 

The  Lever  of  Faith 

.     129 

XXXIX. 

Our  Faithful  Timekeeper 

.     132 

XL. 

Getting  vs.  Giving 

•     139 

XLI. 

Talents        .... 

.     142 

XLII. 

Influence     .... 

.     146 

XLIII. 

A  Word  for  Jesus 

150 

XLIV. 

Fruit  Bearing 

153 

XLV. 

Invisible  Writing 

158 

Experimental  Object  Lessons 


THE  NECESSITY  OF  SALVATION 

"  For  all  have  sinned  and  come  short  of  the  glory  of  God." 
— Rom.  in.  2j. 

Materials  :  Two  lumps  of  loaf  sugar.  A  lump  of  coal. 
Five  cents'  worth  of  the  strongest  sulphuric  acid. 

Has  it  ever  occurred  to  you  that  there  are 
some  people  in  the  world  who  are  so  good 
that  they  have  no  need  of  a  Saviour  ?  There 
certainly  is  a  great  difference  in  people. 
Some  have  so  many  ugly  traits  of  character, 
and  show  them  so  plainly,  that  we  almost 
feel  that  their  hearts  must  be  black  through 
and  through  ;  as  black  for  instance  as  this 
piece  of  coal.  Then  there  are  other  people 
who  have  so  much  sweetness  about  them  ; 
who  are  so  sunshiny  and  lovable  that  we 
think  they  have  no  faults  at  all.  They  seem 
as  sweet  and  white  and  pure  as  this  lump  of 
sugar.  What  a  difference  we  see  in  these 
two  objects,  one  so  white  and  one  so  black  I 
But  we   must  remember  that  our  heavenly 

9 


lo         Experimental  Object  Lessons 

Father  does  not  always  look  at  things  exactly 
as  we  do.  Let  us  read  i  Samuel  xvi.  7  : 
"  Man  looketh  on  the  outward  appearance, 
but  God  looketh  on  the  heart."  Now  what 
would  you  say  if  I  told  you  that  this  sugar 
has  blackness  in  it  just  like  the  coal  ?  Yes, 
you  would  find  it  hard  to  believe  that.  But 
I  will  put  a  few  drops  of  this  liquid  on  it  and 
we  will  see.  This  will  not  stain  the  sugar, 
remember,  but  it  will  take  all  the  water  out 
of  it  and  show  us  what  the  rest  is  like. 
When  God  looks  at  people  He  sees  things 
about  them  which  perhaps  even  they  them- 
selves do  not  know.  He  knows  that  al- 
though some  hearts  are  not  as  bad  as  others, 
still  all  have  some  impurity  ;  so  in  His  great 
mercy  He  sent  His  Son  into  the  world  to  die 
for  us,  so  that  we  can  be  saved  through  His 
merits  since  we  cannot  through  our  own. 
Look  at  our  sugar  now.  It  is  as  black  as 
the  coal.  Here  is  another  lump  which  I  will 
place  beside  it  so  we  can  see  the  contrast. 
Many  of  us  have  dear  friends  whom  we  ad- 
mire and  who  have  really  fine  characters,  but 
we  must  remember  that  no  one  on  earth  is 
good  enough  to  be  safe  without  Jesus. 


II 

STEADFASTNESS 

«'  Therefore  my  beloved  brethren,  be  ye  steadfast,  unmov- 
able,  always  abounding  in  the  work  of  the  Lord." — /  Cor, 
XV.  j8. 

Materials  :  A  piece  of  dark  coloured  velvet.  A  drop  of 
water.     A  drop  of  quicksilver.     A  shot. 

In  our  Bible  lessons  we  become  familiar 
with  the  characters  of  many  people  who  lived 
long  ago.  They  are  described  very  honestly 
and  accurately  so  that  we  can  profit  by  their 
good  examples  and  take  warning  from  their 
failures.  On  this  piece  of  velvet  we  will 
place  three  drops  and  see  if  we  can  think 
how  they  might  represent  three  different 
kinds  of  people.  (Shake  out  upon  the  velvet 
a  drop  of  water,  one  of  quicksilver  and  a 
shot.)  Yes,  we  exclaim  at  once,  "  How  pretty 
the  quicksilver  looks ! "  The  water  also 
shines  like  a  diamond,  but  we  do  not  think 
the  shot  very  attractive.  But  let  us  go  more 
slowly.  Appearances  are  often  deceitful. 
The  drop  of  water  is  indeed  beautiful  but  as 
something  to  represent  a  character — let  us 
see.  Place  your  finger  upon  it  a  moment. 
II 


12         Experimental  Object  Lessons 

Now  where  is  it  ?  Absolutely  gone.  What 
is  a  character  worth  that  will  not  stand  pres- 
sure ?  Read  Ps.  xxxvii.  lo :  "  For  yet  a 
little  while  and  the  wicked  shall  not  be ;  yea, 
thou  shalt  diligently  consider  his  place  and 
it  shall  not  be."  The  water  drop,  pretty  as 
it  is,  would  hardly  be  the  one  we  should  wish 
to  have  represent  our  character,  is  it  ?  Now 
the  silver  drop  is  almost  more  beautiful. 
How  it  glistens  against  the  dark  velvet  I 
Take  it  up  and  examine  it.  You  cannot? 
No,  it  slides  from  under  your  fingers.  It 
even  breaks  into  little  balls  and  runs  around 
the  velvet.  Read  Jas.  i.  8 :  **  A  double 
minded  man  is  unstable  in  all  his  ways." 
The  quicksilver  seems  only  fitted  to  represent 
an  unreliable  character  ;  one  which  cannot  be 
depended  upon.  Surely  then  we  would  not 
choose  the  beautiful  silver  drop  to  represent 
our  character.  So  all  that  is  left  to  us  is  this 
dingy  hard  litde  ball  called  a  shot.  While  it 
is  not  as  showy  as  either  of  the  other  drops 
it  will  grow  more  attractive  to  us  the  longer 
we  think  about  it.  See  how  firm  it  is.  You 
can  press  with  all  your  might  upon  it  and  it 
will  not  be  crushed  (2  Tim.  ii.  3).  If  you 
wish  you  can  take  it  up  in  your  fingers  or 
throw  it  upon  the  floor  without  injuring  it 
(Ps.  xxxvii.  23,  24).     It  is  solid  and  sound  to 


Steadfastness 


13 


the  very  centre  (Ps.  li.  6).  As  the  water 
drop  might  well  represent  the  character  of 
Saul,  and  the  quicksilver  the  character  of 
Absalom,  the  firm,  reliable  lead  drop  might 
represent  the  character  of  David. 


Ill 

GOOD  AND  BAD   COMPANY 

"  Be  not  deceived ;  evil  communications  corrupt  good  man- 
ners."— I  Cor.  XV.  3S' 

Materials :  A  few  strips  of  blue  litmus  paper.  Litmus 
paper  is  kept  at  drug  stores  and  photographic  supply  houses. 
Three  little  shallow  dishes,  one  containing  water,  one  hydro- 
chloric or  acetic  acid  and  one  strong  ammonia. 

The  wise  king  who  wrote  the  book  of  Prov- 
erbs said,  **  Enter  not  into  the  path  of  the 
wicked  and  go  not  in  the  way  of  evil  men  " 
(Prov.  iv.  14).  It  is  a  great  privilege  to  be- 
long to  a  Christian  family.  Boys  and  girls 
sometimes  do  not  realize  how  they  are  ab- 
sorbing great  truths  and  storing  away  in  their 
minds  beautiful  thoughts,  which  will  come  to 
them  again  in  later  years,  as  they  live  day 
after  day  under  the  influence  of  a  good  father 
and  mother.  As  the  little  slips  of  paper  in 
this  dish  all  look  alike  (drop  slips  of  litmus 
paper  into  the  dish  of  water),  so  the  children 
in  a  family,  while  differing  in  their  disposi- 
tions, all  form  the  same  general  principles. 
But  as  time  passes  and  the  children  grow 
older,  usually  they  become  separated,  some 
going  to  one  place  and  some  to  another, 
14 


Good  and  Bad  Company  15 

Here  are  two  more  dishes  containing  liquid 
which  we  will  use  to  represent  homes  into 
which  a  young  person  might  go  when  leaving 
his  own  Christian  home.  One  where  evil 
habits  are  indulged  in,  and  where  the  people 
are  so  far  from  God  that  their  sins  are  like 
crimson.  The  other  where  people  are  brave 
and  kind,  **  true  blue "  as  the  old  saying 
goes.  What  would  be  the  effect  upon  a  boy 
or  girl  entering  these  homes  ?  The  Bible 
says,  **  Be  not  deceived  ;  evil  communications 
corrupt  good  manners."  Let  us  put  one  of 
these  slips  into  each  dish.  See,  one  has 
turned  crimson  while  the  other  is,  if  anything, 
more  blue  than  before.  Do  you  think  it  is  a 
sign  of  weakness  for  a  person  to  be  quickly 
influenced  for  wrong  when  getting  into  bad 
company  ?  Would  a  stronger  willed  person 
be  more  able  to  hold  his  own  colours  true  in 
such  a  place?  (Change  the  red  and  blue 
papers.)  How  quickly  these  papers  change 
colour.  The  red  is  now  blue  and  the  blue  red. 
It  is  true  that  a  very  strong  character  can 
longer  withstand  temptation,  but  there  is  a 
weak  spot  in  every  person,  and  the  Bible 
says,  "  Let  him  that  thinketh  he  standeth  take 
heed  lest  he  fall"  (i  Cor.  x.  12).  There  is 
only  one  time  when  a  Christian  should  trust 
himself  in  evil  surroundings  and  that  is  when 


l6         Experimental  Object  Lessons 

the  direct  call  of  God  takes  him  there.  Then 
he  will  be  upheld  so  strongly  that  he  cannot 
fall.  What  is  apt  to  be  the  result  when 
young  people  who  have  become  tainted  with 
sin  return  to  their  old  home,  among  their 
brothers  and  sisters  again?  (Put  the  red 
paper  back  into  the  dish  of  water.  The  slips 
in  the  dish  will  turn  red  wherever  they  touch 
the  red  paper.)  Young  brothers  and  sisters 
are  so  easily  influenced  by  one  who  has  been 
away  from  them  for  a  time  and  returned 
again.  How  sad  to  bring  sin  into  the  home 
where  one  is  loved  and  trusted  I  How  much 
better  it  would  be  to  go  out  into  the  world 
steadily  avoiding  evil  company ;  following 
the  Bible  rule,  "  My  son,  if  sinners  entice  thee, 
consent  thou  not "  (Pro v.  i.  lo) ;  always  seek- 
ing to  be  with  those  who  will  lead  the  way  to 
higher  things.  So  growing  stronger  and 
better,  until,  when  returning  to  the  old  home, 
one  can  exert  such  a  good  influence  that  all 
will  be  made  better.  (Drop  the  slip  from  the 
dish  of  ammonia  into  the  dish  with  the  others 
and  all,  including  the  red  ones,  will  turn 
blue.) 


IV 


DUTY  MADE  CLEAR 

"  I  will  instruct  thee  and  teach  thee  in  the  way  which  thou 
shalt  go.     I  will  guide  thee  with  mine  eye." — Fs.  xxxii.  8. 
Materials  :    A  basin  or  dish.     Some  water.     A  dollar. 

There  is  nothing  like  the  first  glance  we 
get  at  duty.  You  see  me  drop  a  dollar  in 
this  dish.  As  your  eyes  light  upon  it  you 
comprehend  at  once  its  true  position.  But 
push  your  chairs  back  until  you  lose  sight  of 
the  dollar.  Now  I  will  fill  the  dish  with 
water,  and  see — the  dollar  is  in  plain  view  to 
you  again  although  you  know  it  has  not 
moved.  When  the  water  was  put  into  the 
dish  the  rays  of  light  were  refracted  or  bent 
out  of  their  course  by  the  drops  of  water  so 
that  the  coin  appears  to  occupy  a  position 
which  is  in  reality  not  its  position  at  all.  So 
it  often  is  when  we  consider  a  duty.  God 
has  promised  to  give  us  plain  instruction  in 
the  way  in  which  we  should  go  (Prov.  xv.  19  ; 
Prov.  iii.  6).  He  has  said  that  He  would 
make  the  way  so  plain  that  even  a  fool  could 
walk  in  it  (Isa.  xxxv.  8).  When  we  keep  our 
minds  clear  for  the  rays  of  God's  truth  to 
17 


i8         Experimental  Object  Lessons 

shine  in  we  can  see  things  in  their  true  posi- 
tion. But  when  we  let  our  wishes  and  incli- 
nations come  in  the  way — when  we  stop  to 
consider  and  argue  and  wish  that  things 
could  be  different,  the  light  which  God  gave 
us  at  first  becomes  distorted  and  we  fail  to 
see  things  exactly  as  they  are.  When  the 
voice  of  God  speaks  to  our  hearts  let  us  keep 
the  way  clear  between  Him  and  us  and  not 
try  to  explain  our  duty  away. 


PARDON  AND  CLEANSING 

«  Though  your  sins  be  as  scarlet  they  shall  be  as  white  as 
snow." — Isa.  i.  i8. 

Materials  :  Some  ammonia.  A  few  drops  of  hydrochloric 
acid.  Aj  tablet  of  phenol-phthalein  dissolved  in  a  half  glass  of 
water.     These  tablets  can  be  bought  at  any  drug  store. 

It  is  usually  a  great  deal  easier  to  prevent 
a  calamity  than  to  remedy  one  after  it  has 
occurred.  It  is  a  great  deal  pleasanter  to 
live  a  day  rightly  than  to  look  back  over  it 
at  night  and  wish  it  had  been  different.  If 
children  and  young  people  could  only  realize 
how  important  it  is  to  keep  their  lives  clean 
each  day  as  they  live  it  there  would  be  fewer 
old  men  and  women  looking  back  with  sad 
eyes  over  their  past.  Many  a  young  heart 
is  as  clean  and  pure  as  the  liquid  in  this  glass 
(show  glass  containing  phenol-phthalein)  until 
suddenly  overwhelmed  by  some  powerful 
temptation.  Unless  a  heart  is  given  up  to 
the  control  of  the  Holy  Spirit  what  defense 
has  it  against  the  wiles  of  the  evil  one  ? 
Many  an  unhappy  person  suddenly  awakens 
to  the  fact  that  his  heart,  once  so  pure  and 
19 


20         Experimental  Object  Lessons 

innocent,  has  become  stained  with  sin.  (Pour 
a  few  drops  of  ammonia  into  the  glass  and 
the  liquid  will  become  red.)  In  such  a  case 
a  person  is  helpless.  He  cannot  undo  what 
he  has  done.  No  human  power  can  make 
him  as  he  was  before.  Probably  no  person 
lives  very  long  in  this  world  without  his  heart 
becoming  more  or  less  tainted  with  sin. 
Jesus,  when  He  was  on  earth,  passed  sinlessly 
through  all  the  temptations  and  trials  that 
we  have  to  face  (Heb.  iv.  15),  and  feels  a 
loving  sympathy  for  us  (Heb.  ii.  18),  and  He 
holds  out  a  promise  of  help  to  us  in  this 
verse,  "  Though  your  sins  be  as  scarlet 
they  shall  be  as  white  as  snow."  When  a 
penitent  heart  comes  to  Him  for  pardon  He 
forgives  and  cleanses.  (Pour  a  few  drops  of 
hydrochloric  acid  in  the  glass  and  the  liquid 
will  instantly  lose  its  colour.)  The  miracle  is 
beyond  our  understanding;  it  is  divine.  But 
we  see  the  effects  around  us  everywhere. 
People  who  were  deep  in  sin,  after  looking  to 
Jesus,  become  changed  creatures.  No  one  is 
too  wicked.  No  case  is  too  hopeless  for  the 
Great  Physician. 


VI 

HELP  THE  WEAK 

**  Be  thou  an  example  to  the  believers  in  word,  in  conversa- 
tion, in  charity,  in  spirit,  in  faith,  in  purity." — i/Tim.  iv.  12. 

Materials :  One-half  glass  of  lime-water.  This  can  be 
bought  at  any  drug  store  for  five  cents.  A  small  quantity  of 
acetic  acid.  A  tube  such  as  the  stem  of  a  clay  pipe  or  a  clean 
straw. 

We  know  that  there  are  many  different 
dispositions  in  the  world.  Among  others  are 
the  people  who  are  very  easily  influenced. 
We  all  meet  them  as  we  go  through  life. 
Sometimes  they  are  the  most  lovable  of  peo- 
ple ;  so  yielding  and  gentle.  They  fall  so 
easily  into  our  plans  and  agree  so  cheerfully 
to  anything  we  suggest  that  we  take  great 
pleasure  in  their  society.  Their  hearts  are 
perhaps  pure  and  clear,  like  this  water. 
What  a  pity  it  would  be  if  such  a  nature 
should  lose  any  of  its  purity  through  our  in- 
fluence. There  are  some  things  which  a 
strong  Christian  can  do  without  hurting  him- 
self in  the  least,  but  which  a  weak  Christian 
would  be  harmed  by.  Paul  said,  "  We  then 
that  are  strong  ought  to  bear  the  infirmities 
21 


22         Experimental  Object  Lessons 

of  the  weak,  and  not  to  please  ourselves" 
(Rom.  XV.  i).  I  will  take  a  tube  and  blow 
some  of  my  breath  into  this  clear  water. 
See,  it  has  grown  clouded  and  lost  all  its 
clearness.  Could  we  ever  forgive  ourselves 
if  the  faith  of  any  friend  of  ours  became 
clouded  through  our  influence?  Yes,  this 
water  can  be  cleared  again.  (Drop  a  little 
acid  in  the  glass  and  the  water  will  clear  in- 
stantly.) There  is  always  a  way  of  salvation 
for  those  whose  hearts  get  wrong — but  what 
a  risk  to  run  !  How  can  we  know  that  our 
friend  will  ever  have  strength  of  character  to 
seek  Jesus  and  be  purified?  Perhaps  the 
harm  we  do  will  never  be  undone.  We 
should  all  resolve  to  avoid  such  pleasures 
and  pursuits  as  will  in  any  way  harm  the 
weakest  Christian,  so  that  our  example  will 
be  one  which  will  tend  to  make  the  lives 
about  us  purer  instead  of  dimming  their 
clearness  in  any  way. 


VII 

LOVE,  THE  MAGNET 

"  And  I,  if  I  be  lifted  up  from  the  earth  will  draw  all  men 
unto  Me." — John.  xii.  J2. 

Materials  :    A  magnet.     Several  needles. 

There  is  a  certain  kind  of  stone  found  in 
the  earth  called  lodestone,  which  has  great 
drawing  power.  All  of  you  who  have  owned 
a  magnet,  even  a  small  one,  have  seen  some- 
thing of  this  power.  I  have  here  a  little 
magnet  which  we  will  use  to  illustrate  our 
lesson.  Now  what  would  you  consider  the 
greatest  drawing  power  in  the  world  ?  What 
was  it  that  caused  Jesus  to  die  on  the  cross 
for  us  ?  Yes,  love.  A  wonderful  love  that 
draws  all  our  hearts  to  Him.  As  I  pass  the 
magnet  above  these  needles  let  us  watch 
them.  See,  they  all  yield  to  the  drawing 
power  of  the  magnet  just  as  something  in 
each  human  heart  responds  to  love.  We 
will  rub  one  of  these  needles  against  the 
magnet  until  it  is  well  magnetized ;  now  let 
us  see  if  it  has  not  greater  drawing  power  than 
its  fellows.  Yes,  it  draws  the  others.  Read 
John  XV.  5.  Many  a  person  who  is  without 
power  alone,  when  filled  with  the  Holy  Spirit, 
23 


24         Experimental  Object  Lessons 

can  sway  and  influence  multitudes.  One 
very  interesting  and  curious  fact  about  a 
magnet  is  this  :  A  magnet  which  holds  a 
weight  all  the  time  has  its  power  kept  up, 
and  in  some  cases  it  is  apparently  increased, 
while  if  you  give  a  magnet  nothing  to  do  its 
power  will  grow  weak.  It  is  for  this  reason 
that  when  you  go  into  a  place  where  large 
magnets  are  kept  you  see  each  with  a  great 
bar  of  steel  hanging  to  it.  The  same  rule 
holds  good  in  a  Christian  life.  The  harder 
we  work  for  God  the  more  power  we  have 
but  if  we  let  our  talents  lie  idle  they  lose 
their  power.  The  power  of  a  magnet  does 
not  seem  to  have  much  effect  at  a  distance. 
(If  the  teacher  can  secure  some  of  the  little 
toy  ducks  and  fishes  which  are  made  to  fol- 
low magnets  they  can  be  used  here  ;  other- 
wise needles  will  do,  or  some  steel  filings.) 
If  you  hold  your  magnet  quite  away  from 
the  object  it  will  not  make  a  move,  but  bring  it 
slowly  nearer  and  nearer  and  all  at  once  away 
it  goes  to  cling  to  the  magnet.  When  Jesus 
was  on  earth  and  wanted  to  heal  or  help  any 
one  He  usually  laid  His  hands  upon  them. 
He  always  made  them  feel  His  love.  So 
when  we  wish  to  draw  others  to  Jesus,  we 
must  get  close  to  them  and  let  them  feel  our 
love. 


VIII 

THE  MESSAGE  OF  THE  FLOWERS 

"  Consider  the  lilies  of  the  field,  how  they  gxow:'— Matt, 
vi.  28. 

Materials  :  A  bouquet  composed  of  roses,  lilies,  violets, 
nasturtiums  and  little  wild  flowers. 

What  a  beautiful  bouquet  we  have  to-day. 
Roses,  lilies,  violets,  nasturtiums  and  these 
tiny  wild  flowers.  How  sweet  they  are  and 
how  they  brighten  up  our  class  room.  I  won- 
der what  they  will  say  to  us.  Flowers  always 
seem  to  have  some  beautiful  thoughts  to  ex- 
press if  we  only  can  tell  what  they  are.  Did 
you  ever  think  that  perhaps  as  God  looks 
down  into  this  world  it  looks  like  a  garden 
to  Him,  and  all  the  people  like  human  flow- 
ers? Perhaps  we  can  learn  some  lessons 
from  the  real  flowers  that  will  help  us  grow 
sweet  and  beautiful  and  please  our  Great 
Gardener.  See  the  wee  blue  violet  under 
these  green  leaves.  Let  us  lift  it  out.  Do 
you  suppose  the  little  violets,  as  they  grow 
so  lowly  in  shady  places,  ever  look  out  into 
the  bright  sunshine  and  envy  the  beautiful 
25 


26         Experimental  Object  Lessons 

roses  bathed  in  all  the  brightness  of  the  sun's 
rays?  Sometimes  people  who  have  to  live 
very  quiet  lives  ;  people  who  are  poor ;  peo- 
ple who  are  sick ;  people  who  are  sad  and 
lonely,  look  out  and  envy  rich,  healthy,  happy 
people  who  seem  to  live  always  in  the  sun- 
shine. But  suppose  this  violet  had  grown  in 
the  glaring  sunlight,  what  would  have  hap- 
pened ?  It  might  have  lived,  but  it  never 
would  have  been  so  large  and  beautiful  a 
blossom.  Its  colour  would  not  have  been  as 
rich  nor  its  fragrance  as  sweet.  The  Great 
Gardener  knew  exactly  where  to  have  it 
grow,  just  as  He  knows  exactly  the  best 
place  for  each  of  His  human  flowers.  Many 
people  who  may  blossom  sweetly  in  shady 
places  are  not  fitted  for  the  brightness  of 
prosperity.  The  violet  seems  to  tell  us  to  be 
modest  and  content  with  whatever  place  in 
the  great  garden  that  God  gives  us. 

And  now  see  this  gay  nasturtium.  Have 
you  ever  noticed  that  nasturtiums  often  have 
the  poorest  ground  in  the  garden  to  grow  in  ? 
Not  because  they  grow  better  in  poor  ground 
but  because  they  will  grow  there  if  they  can 
get  no  better  place,  while  most  other  plants 
would  not  blossom  at  all  in  such  soil.  Brave 
little  nasturtiums  I  Can  we  not  take  a  lesson 
from  them  ?    If  people  all  around  us  seem  to 


The  Message  of  the  Flowers         27 

be  in  better  circumstances  than  we ;  if  there 
seem  to  be  more  stones  and  difficulties  in  our 
path  than  in  the  paths  of  others,  let  us  think 
of  the  bright  nasturtiums  and  put  on  the 
bravest  face  we  can  and  fill  our  poor  spot  in 
the  garden  so  full  of  brightness  that  no  one 
except  the  Great  Gardener  will  ever  know 
how  hard  the  ground  is  that  we  have  to 
grow  in. 

And  now  the  rose.  A  rose  is  at  home 
everywhere.  It  is  good  enough  for  a  king's 
palace  and  yet  is  none  too  good  to  grow 
on  a  washerwoman's  window-sill.  At  the 
marriage  feast  the  rose  has  a  prominent 
place  and  it  always  brings  sweet  comfort 
at  a  funeral.  Old  people,  middle-aged 
people  and  little  children  all  love  a  rose, 
and  who  can  think  of  an  occasion  where  one 
would  be  out  of  place  ?  In  the  same  way  a 
Christian  should  be  welcome  everywhere. 
We  should  be  able  to  **  rejoice  with  those 
who  rejoice  and  weep  with  those  who  weep." 
We  should  be  "  all  things  to  all  men."  The 
rose  is  called  the  "  Queen  of  Flowers,"  but 
she  suggests  nothing  of  haughtiness  or  arro- 
gance. Nothing  but  sweetness  and  love 
come  from  her. 

See  this  frail  little  wild  flower.  It  grew 
alone   in  the  woods  and  many  like  it  will 


28         Experimental  Object  Lessons 

blossom  and  fade  with  no  human  eye  to  see 
them.  Notice  how  deHcately  it  is  made. 
Every  little  detail  about  it  is  perfect.  Its 
petals  are  of  a  material  more  exquisite  than 
the  most  skillful  man  could  manufacture 
though  he  were  offered  thousands  of  dollars 
to  do  it.  And  yet  hundreds  of  millions  of 
little  wild  flowers  blossom  every  year  un- 
noticed, and  each  is  as  perfect  as  this  one. 
Does  it  not  encourage  those  of  us  who  feel 
humble  and  insignificant  ?  If  God  will  make 
such  little  things  as  these  and  make  them  so 
perfect  in  all  the  tiny  details  and  will  care 
for  them  and  give  them  power  to  blossom, 
will  He  not  take  note  of  our  little  lives,  al- 
though we  feel  that  they  are  of  little  account 
to  the  world  ?  And  if  He  takes  notice  of  us 
as  we  grow  why  should  we  care  for  anything 
else? 

And  now  our  beautiful  lilies.  There  are 
two  kinds  here.  This  is  a  water-lily.  How 
lovely  these  white  beauties  are  as  they  rest 
lightly  on  the  surface  of  a  lake !  Whoever 
gathered  this  blossom  for  us  secured  a  good 
length  of  the  stem  but  not  all  of  it.  Down  it 
went,  farther  and  farther  until  it  entered  into 
the  mud  at  the  bottom  of  the  lake.  This 
white  flower  does  not  suggest  the  thought  of 
mud  to  us.     Purity  is  what  it  seems  to  ex- 


The  Message  of  the  Flowers         29 

press  ;  yet  it  sprang  from  the  blackest  mud 
you  can  imagine.  Many  a  boy  or  girl  has 
been  kept  from  beginning  a  Christian  life  by 
the  thought  that  with  his  evil  home  life  and 
surroundings  it  would  be  impossible.  But 
this  is  a  mistake.  No  matter  how  low  a 
person  may  be  in  the  beginning,  let  him  push 
upward  and  upward  and  upward,  always 
towards  the  Sun  of  Righteousness,  and  finally 
he  will  come  out  on  top  of  his  difficulties  and 
may  blossom  into  a  pure  Christian  character. 
Here  is  another  kind  of  lily.  It  could  say 
many  things  to  us  but  its  loudest  message 
seems  to  be  of  the  resurrection.  Think  where 
this  beautiful  flower  was  before  it  blossomed. 
In  a  common  looking  brown  bulb  like  this. 
(Show  bulb.)  There  was  nothing  beautiful 
about  the  bulb.  But  in  the  fall  some  one 
planted  it  in  the  earth.  How  we  sorrow 
when  our  friends  are  laid  in  the  ground  after 
what  we  call  death,  and  how  some  people 
dread  the  day  when  they  too  shall  be  laid 
away.  But  the  winter  passed  and  in  the 
spring  up  sprang  a  green  plant  from  the 
lily  bulb  and  soon  opened  this  fragrant  flower. 
The  bulb  was  not  seen  again,  but  who  wanted 
it  when  the  flower  was  so  much  more  beauti- 
ful ?  So  it  will  be  with  us  when  we  die.  We 
will  change  into  something  as  much  more 


30         Experimental  Object  Lessons 

beautiful  than  we  are  now  as  this  lily  is  more 
beautiful  than  the  bulb. 

Now  all  the  flowers  have  said  something 
to  us.  There  are  many  other  blossoms  also 
which  could  tell  us  things  we  would  like  to 
hear.  When  you  play  in  your  gardens  sit 
down  by  your  flowers  sometimes  and  try  to 
get  them  to  talk  to  you.  Notice  the  fragrance 
that  comes  from  them.  It  floats  away  and 
never  goes  back,  and  as  long  as  they  live 
they  keep  giving  it  out.  That  fragrance  is 
like  a  person's  influence.  We  all  give  out 
an  influence  which  reaches  the  people  around 
us  all  the  time,  whether  we  know  it  or  not, 
and  afiects  them  for  good  or  bad.  How 
careful  we  ought  to  be  to  send  out  a  good 
influence,  as  the  flowers  send  out  a  sweet 
perfume. 


IX 

THE  HEART  FOR  JESUS 

"  Keep  thy  heart  with  all  diligence ;  for  out  of  it  are  the 
issues  of  life." — Prov.  iv.  2j. 

Materials  :  A  small  empty  bottle.  A  little  water.  A  little 
kerosene  oil.     Five  cents'  worth  of  quicksilver. 

What  have  I  in  this  bottle?  Nothing? 
Think  again.  We  are  apt  to  forget  things 
we  cannot  see.  The  bottle  is  full  of  air.  Air 
is  a  mysterious  and  wonderful  thing.  We 
could  not  live  without  it,  yet  we  cannot  see 
it  and  so  we  seldom  think  of  it.  What  is 
wind  ?  Yes,  wind  is  air  in  motion.  Can  any 
one  think  of  a  Bible  verse  which  speaks  of 
wind  and  also  of  the  Holy  Spirit  ?  In  what 
ways  are  the  Holy  Spirit  and  air  alike  ?  They 
are  both  invisible  ;  both  everywhere  ;  both 
life  giving.  One  who  is  willing  to  live  a 
pure  life  may  have  his  heart  as  full  of  the 
Holy  Spirit  as  this  bottle  is  full  of  air.  But 
how  many  things  there  are  to  crowd  the 
Holy  Spirit  out  of  a  heart.  Take  for  instance 
the  case  of  a  young  boy  who  has  been 
brought  up  in  a  Christian  home  and  trained 
to  love  and  obey  God.  His  heart  might  well 
be  represented  by  this  bottle  as  it  is  now. 
But  the  lad  falls  into  bad  company.  He  is 
31 


32         Experimental  Object  Lessons 

gradually  drawn  into  a  crowd  of  pleasure- 
seeking,  idle  youths,  and  all  too  soon  some 
bad  habit — let  us  say  that  of  cigarette  smok- 
ing— becomes  fastened  upon  him.  He  knows 
the  unclean  practice  is  in  opposition  to  the 
Holy  Spirit,  but  he  clings  to  it  and  conse- 
quently a  change  takes  place  in  his  heart, 
something  like  this.  (Pour  the  oil  into  the 
bottle.)  Is  there  now  as  much  air  in  our 
bottle  as  there  was  before?  Certainly  not. 
Some  has  been  crowded  out,  just  as  love  for 
any  evil  habit  will  usurp  room  in  the  heart 
which  belongs  to  the  Holy  Spirit.  Perhaps 
cigarette  smoking  could  not  be  called  a 
positive  sin;  but  how  long  is  a  boy  in  a 
cigarette-smoking  crowd  before  the  tempta- 
tion comes  to  him  to  indulge  in  the  so-called 
**  temperance  drinks,"  cider,  malt,  etc.  This 
habit,  taking  even  a  deeper  place  in  the  boy's 
heart,  produces  an  effect  like  this.  (Pour  in 
the  water  which  will  drop  below  the  oil.) 
How  much  less  room  there  is  now  in  this 
bottle  for  air.  And  how  much  less  room  in 
the  heart  of  the  boy  for  the  Spirit  of  God. 
"Temperance  drinks  "  contain  enough  alcohol 
to  create  a  craving  for  more.  The  company 
in  which  they  are  enjoyed  usually  provides 
the  temptation,  and  soon  the  boy  finds  him- 
self drinking  whiskey  and  brandy.     The  fear- 


The  Heart  for  Jesus  33 

ful  liquor  habit  strikes  its  fangs  deep  into  the 
very  bottom  of  the  heart.  (Put  in  quicksilver 
which  will  drop  below  the  water.)  The  air 
is  now  nearly  gone  from  this  bottle,  crowded 
out  by  heavier  things.  There  is  still  a  little 
left,  as  there  is  hardly  a  heart  in  the  world  so 
utterly  depraved  that  there  cannot  be  found 
at  least  a  spark  of  the  Divine  Love  in  it. 
Can  these  things  mix  together  ?  (Shake  the 
bottle.  There  will  be  a  great  commotion  for 
a  minute  but  soon  each  liquid  will  regain  its 
own  place.)  The  Holy  Spirit  will  have  no 
fellowship  with  wickedness.  As  far  as  He  is 
allowed  right  of  way  He  will  purify  and  keep 
a  heart  clean,  but  if  a  person  loves  and  clings 
to  evil  things  He  can  do  little  for  him.  If  we 
want  our  botde  full  of  air  again  what  must 
we  do?  Pour  out  all  the  other  things,  of 
course.  If  the  boy  we  were  speaking  of 
wants  to  have  the  Holy  Spirit  rule  in  his 
heart  again  what  must  he  do  ?  Get  the  evil 
things  out  of  his  heart  and  life.  This  is  be- 
yond human  power,  but  God  is  willing  to  do 
it  for  any  one  who  will  ask  Him.  All  He 
waits  for  is  a  prayer  such  as  this,  "  Create  in 
me  a  clean  heart,  oh,  Lord,  and  renew  a  right 
spirit  within  me  "  (Ps.  li.  10). 

Note  :    Any  other  sins  may  be  substituted  for  those  mentioned 
here. 


THE  FOLLY  OF  AFFECTATION 

"  For  godliness  with  contentment  is  great  gain." — i  Tim.  vi.  6. 

Materials :     A  dish  of    ammonia.     Some   pink   roses,  red 

sweet  peas,  red  and  pink  poppies,  blue  daisies  and  pink  phlox. 

Boys  and  girls  are  great  hero  worshippers. 
It  is  well  that  this  should  be  so.  The  noble 
examples  to  be  found  in  history  and  even  in 
the  present  generation  are  inspiring  and  have 
helped  many  a  young  person  to  rise  through 
discouragements  to  success.  But  the  tend- 
ency to  hero  worship  has  its  dangers  also. 
It  is  easier  to  fix  our  admiration  upon  some 
one  living  and  near  to  us  than  to  let  our 
imagination  dwell  upon  noble  lives  that  have 
passed  away.  And  since  we  are  influenced 
so  greatly  by  external  appearances  we  are  in 
danger  of  trying  more  to  imitate  the  man- 
ners of  people  we  admire  than  the  beauties 
of  their  characters.  Imitation  at  the  best  is 
a  poor  thing.  God  does  not  want  two  peo- 
ple in  His  world  to  be  alike.  He  has  not 
created  even  two  leaves  alike.  We  can 
please  Him  better  by  being  a  success  in  our 
individual  way  than  by  being  a  poor  imita- 
34 


The  Folly  of  Affectation  35 

tion  of  some  one  else.  See  this  pretty  pink 
rose.  Pink  roses  are  common,  of  course. 
Probably  God  has  created  more  roses  of 
pink  than  of  any  other  colour.  But  if  this 
rose  could  feel  dissatisfied  and  wish  to  turn 
to  a  more  unusual  colour  could  it  make 
itself  any  more  beautiful  than  it  is  now? 
(Immerse  the  rose  in  the  ammonia  and  it 
will  turn  light  green  very  quickly.)  Its 
colour  could  indeed  be  changed  but  do  you 
think  that  the  artificial  colour  is  as  pretty  as 
the  colour  in  which  it  was  created  ?  Many 
a  little  girl  wishes  she  could  be  as  beautiful 
or  as  graceful  as  some  other  girl,  or  as 
elegant  in  her  deportment  as  some  admired 
woman.  But  in  trying  to  imitate  these  peo- 
ple she  becomes  unnatural  and  affected  in 
her  manner  and  so  makes  herself  less  at- 
tractive just  as  this  green  rose  is  unnatural 
looking  and  less  beautiful  than  the  pink  one. 
We  can  change  the  colour  of  the  other 
flowers  also  if  we  wish.  (Red  sweet  peas 
dipped  in  ammonia  become  blue  or  purple, 
red  poppies  dark  blue,  pink  poppies  light 
blue,  blue  daisies  and  white  phlox  bright 
green.  The  two  last  named  take  a  little 
longer  in  changing  than  the  rest.)  They 
are  more  uncommon  now  certainly  and 
would  attract  more  attention  perhaps ;   but 


36         Experimental  Object  Lessons 

would  the  attention  be  admiration  ?  Are  not 
all  flowers  more  beautiful  just  as  God  created 
them  ?  Many  times  boys  try  to  imitate  men, 
and  often  they  make  the  mistake  of  thinking 
that  if  they  smoke,  chew  or  swear  they  are 
being  manly.  On  the  contrary  they  are 
destroying  their  chance  of  ever  becoming 
truly  manly.  A  rose  that  is  marred  in  the 
bud  will  never  develop  into  a  perfect  flower. 
The  best  way  for  us  all  is  to  remain  perfectly 
natural  and  unaffected  in  our  manners,  only 
striving  to  make  ourselves  the  best  self  it  is 
possible  for  us  to  become.  If  we  are  plain 
or  homely  we  can  say,  "  I  will  show  the 
world  how  sweet  God  can  make  a  plain 
person."  If  we  are  deformed  or  an  invalid 
we  can  say,  **  I  will  show  the  world  what  God 
can  do  through  a  cripple,"  No  matter  what 
we  are  let  us  say,  '*  I  will  be  the  best  person, 
with  God's  help,  that  a  person  like  myself 
can  be."  Then  we  will  be  living  our  own 
life,  and  no  matter  how  poor  we  may  think 
it,  it  will  be  our  own  and  not  an  imitation  of 
another's. 


XI 

LIFE  AFTER  DEATH 

"To  die  is  gain."— P/S:/.  i.  21. 

Materials  :  A  cocoon  and,  if  possible,  a  living  butterfly  or 
moth.  Cocoons  are  often  found  under  oak  or  maple  trees  in 
July.  If  the  ground  under  a  tree  that  has  been  infested  with 
caterpillars  be  carefully  cleared  of  leaves  in  early  June,  the 
search  during  the  following  weeks,  until  the  middle  of  July,  is 
almost  certain  to  be  rewarded.  The  beautiful  moth  may  often 
be  found  near  by.  In  the  winter  a  certain  species  of  butterfly 
may  be  found  hanging  in  crevices  between  the  boards  of  a  shed 
or  beneath  loose  clapboards  or  shingles.  Or  they  are  some- 
times found  in  tearing  away  a  slab  of  bark  from  an  old  stump. 
They  are  difficult  to  find  for  even  when  your  eyes  are  resting 
upon  them  you  will  hardly  be  able  to  tell  them  from  faded 
brown  or  gray  chips.  Their  wings  are  folded  upon  their  backs 
concealing  the  colour.  These  butterflies  are  easily  kept  in  the 
house  during  the  winter. 

Life  is  very  pleasant  to  most  of  us.  We 
enjoy  our  pleasures  day  by  day,  and  even 
when  sorrow  comes  to  us  we  still  cling  to 
life.  Do  you  see  this  curious  cocoon  and 
can  you  tell  what  kind  of  a  creature  once  oc- 
cupied it  ?  You  have  all  seen  caterpillars  in 
the  summer,  sometimes  crawling  along  the 
road  or  wriggling  up  a  tree  trunk.  You 
shudder  and  draw  away  from  them.  Little 
37 


38         Experimental  Object  Lessons 

girls  always  detest  worms  and  even  boys  feel 
a  disgust  for  them  I  am  sure  although  they 
do  not  like  to  acknowledge  it.  But  it  may 
be  that  the  caterpillar  enjoys  life  very  well. 
He  has  no  knowledge  of  a  higher  kind  of 
existence  than  his  own  and  so  he  is  probably 
satisfied.  For  all  we  know  he  may  dread 
the  day  when  he  must  die.  But  as  he  lives 
among  the  other  worms  on  the  tree,  eating 
away  upon  the  foliage,  he  finally  nears  the 
end  of  his  short  life,  and  descending  from 
the  tree  he  burrows  into  the  ground  several 
inches,  where  he  goes  into  a  chrysalis  state. 
Is  he  dead  ?  No,  indeed,  he  is  no  more  dead 
than  you  and  I  will  be  when  our  bodies  fail 
us  and  are  put  under  the  ground  for  a  little 
while.  Caterpillars  do  not  really  die  al- 
though they  seem  to  do  so,  and  people  who 
love  Jesus  never  die  although  they  are  called 
dead.  Read  John  xi.  26 :  **  Whosoever 
liveth  and  believeth  in  Me  shall  never  die." 
By  and  by  the  caterpillar,  which  has  been 
lying  in  a  curious  little  cocoon  like  this,  stirs 
himself  and  comes  out  of  the  top,  where  you 
see  this  opening,  and  oh,  how  glorious  is  the 
change  which  has  come  over  him  I  Whereas 
he  once  had  to  wriggle  and  crawl  slowly 
along,  now  he  has  beautiful  bright  wings 
with  which  he  can  fly  wherever  he  wishes. 


Life  After  Death  39 

How  many  slow,  patient  movements  he  once 
had  to  make  in  crossing  a  road,  in  danger 
every  moment  of  being  crushed  to  death. 
Now  he  can  float  quickly  and  easily  off 
towards  the  beautiful  gardens.  He  can  visit 
places  he  never  even  thought  of  in  his  former 
state  and  his  life  is  immeasurably  happier 
and  better.  If  the  butterfly  could  talk  and 
think,  and  you  should  ask  him  whether  or 
not  he  wished  to  go  back  to  his  caterpillar 
state,  what  do  you  suppose  he  would  an- 
swer? Just  such  a  grand  experience  is 
coming  to  you  and  me  some  day.  We  shall 
go  to  sleep,  and  God  will  take  care  of  us  in 
some  wonderful  way,  just  as  He  made  this 
nice  cocoon  to  keep  the  worm  safe  in.  Then 
by  and  by  we  will  open  our  eyes  and  find 
that  some  grand,  beautiful  change  has  taken 
place  in  us,  and  we  will  begin  to  enjoy  life 
as  we  never  dream  of  enjoying  it  now.  We 
shall  have  pleasures  that  we  do  not  even 
know  the  names  of  yet.  We  cannot  possibly 
imagine  how  happy  our  lives  will  then  be. 
Jesus  says  it  is  impossible  for  any  one  in  the 
world  to  think  of  the  wonderful  things  which 
God  has  prepared  for  His  children  who  love 
Him  (i  Cor.  ii.  9).  So  let  us  never  be  afraid 
of  dying.  Having  His  children  die  is  only 
a  way   God   takes   of   changing  them   into 


40         Experimental  Object  Lessons 

something  as  much  more  beautiful  and 
happy  than  we  are  now  as  this  butterfly  is 
more  beautiful  and  happy  than  the  worm 
which  used  to  be  in  this  cocoon. 


XII 

GROWING  IN  GRACE 

«*  Let  the  words  of  my  mouth,  and  the  meditations  of  my 
heart,  be  acceptable  in  Thy  sight,  oh,  Lord,  my  strength  and 
my  Redeemer." — Ps.  xix.  14. 

Materials  :    Some  white  pansies.     Some  ammonia. 

In  one  of  our  lessons  we  considered  the 
folly  of  affectation,  and  by  seeing  how  much 
less  attractive  some  flowers  were  after  their 
colours  had  been  changed,  we  realized  that 
people  also  would  do  better  to  keep  their 
own  individuality  rather  than  to  imitate  the 
manners  of  other  people.  Many  young 
girls  spoil  themselves  by  a  silly,  affected 
manner,  and  often  the  habit  becomes  so 
fixed  that  it  remains  throughout  the  whole 
life.  Too  much  cannot  be  said  against 
affectation.  But  we  have  some  flowers 
which  change  their  colour  so  beautifully  that 
we  did  not  wish  to  use  them  in  teaching  that 
lesson  but  will  let  them  illustrate  another 
truth  for  us  to-day. 

We  all  have  traits  of  character  which  we 
wish  we  did  not  possess.  Some  of  us  are 
cross  and  irritable,  some  jealous,  some 
41 


42         Experimental  Object  Lessons 

envious,  some  vain,  some  selfish,  and  so  on 
and  on  and  on.  We  also  all  know  of  virtues 
which  we  wish  were  characteristic  of  us. 
Often  in  trying  to  improve  ourselves  we  be- 
come discouraged  and  think  we  shall  never 
succeed.  It  certainly  is  hard  to  struggle 
against  our  natural  dispositions.  But  with 
such  a  powerful  friend  as  Jesus  ready  to  help 
us  every  day  (Ps.  xxvii.  14)  and  to  sympathize 
with  us  and  encourage  us  to  try  again  when- 
ever we  fail  (Heb.  iv.  15,  16),  we  ought  to  be 
able  to  accomplish  anything.  (Drop  the 
pansies  into  ammonia  and  they  will  quickly 
turn  bright  yellow.)  We  have  seen  the  folly 
of  trying  to  imitate  human  beings,  now  let 
us  learn  that  we  can,  with  God's  help,  change 
and  improve  our  characters.  Jesus  has  given 
us  a  good  rule  to  follow  in  Phil.  iv.  8.  He 
tells  us  to  think  only  of  things  that  are  good 
and  true,  honest,  just,  pure  and  lovely.  Our 
words  and  deeds  spring  from  our  hearts.  If 
we  are  inclined  to  speak  and  act  wrongly, 
we  should  ask  God  to  change  the  thoughts 
of  our  hearts,  for  there  is  the  seat  of  the 
trouble.  If  we  will  do  that,  and  then  care- 
fully watch  our  thoughts,  our  lives  will  surely 
change  just  as  this  flower  has  changed.  See 
how  perfectly  natural  this  yellow  colour  is. 
Now  that  it  is  dry  and  I  place  it  beside  a 


Growing  in  Grace  43 

natural  yellow  pansy  you  cannot  tell  one  from 
the  other.  So  it  will  be  with  one  who  patiently 
strives,  year  after  year,  to  grow  in  grace.  In 
time  he  will  be  so  completely  changed  that  it 
will  be  impossible  for  his  associates  to  tell 
whether  his  virtues  were  a  part  of  his  natural 
character  or  were  acquired ;  or  to  know 
whether  he  was  always  free  from  certain 
faults  or  whether  he  has  learned  to  master 
them. 


XIII 
SEED  TIME  AND  HARVEST 

"  And  let  us  not  be  weary  in  well  doing,  for  in  due  season 
we  shall  reap  if  we  faint  not." — Gal.  vi.  g. 

Materials  :    Little  dishes  containing  different  kinds  of  seeds. 

Are  you  wondering  why  we  have  all  these 
little  seeds  before  us  to-day  ?  Here  are  tiny 
things  so  small  that  it  is  hard  to  believe  they 
amount  to  anything  at  all.  Here  for  contrast 
is  an  acorn.  Then  we  have  white  seeds  and 
black  seeds,  oats  and  other  grains  and  many 
kinds  of  flower  seeds.  Have  you  ever 
stopped  to  think  how  wonderful  these  Httle 
seeds  are  ?  No  one  in  the  world  could  make 
anything  half  so  marvellous.  If  we  take  one 
of  these  seeds  and  place  it  in  the  ground,  it 
soon  ceases  to  be  a  seed  and  we  have  instead 
a  beautiful  or  a  useful  plant.  The  mysterious 
and  wonderful  thing  we  call  life  is  within  each 
of  these  seeds  ;  and  life  is  something  that  only 
God  can  give.  There  is  a  good  deal  said  in 
the  Bible  about  sowing  and  reaping.  Let 
some  one  read  Gal.  vi.  7.  If  I  were  very 
fond  of  watermelons  and  concluded  to  raise 
some  in  my  garden,  I  should  first  plow  up  my 
44 


Seed  Time  and  Harvest  45 

ground,  and  after  I  had  made  it  fine  and  mel- 
low, I  should  sow  my  seeds.  But  what  would 
you  think  of  me  if  I  should  sow  these  pump- 
kin seeds  instead  of  these  melon  seeds,  and 
then  expect  a  feast  of  watermelons?  It 
would  be  very  foolish  of  me,  would  it  not? 
Some  people  are  fond  of  saying  that  boys 
must  **  sow  their  wild  oats."  If  I  want  a  crop 
of  good  oats  like  these  in  this  dish  what  kind 
of  oats  must  I  sow  ?  Certainly,  I  must  sow 
good  oats  because  if  I  sow  wild  ones  I  must 
also  reap  wild  ones  (Gal.  vi.  8).  Spring  is 
the  time  to  sow  seeds  and  youth  is  the  time 
to  form  habits.  Our  days  are  like  gardens 
and  in  them  we  sow  deeds  and  words  and 
thoughts  ;  and  the  kind  we  sow  determines 
what  we  shall  reap  when  we  are  old.  If  a 
child  lets  seeds  of  envy,  discontent,  anger  and 
other  evil  things  take  root  in  his  heart,  he 
cannot  expect  to  reap  peace,  contentment 
and  joy  when  he  is  old.  To  enjoy  these 
blessings  he  must  in  his  youth  sow  seeds  of 
loving  deeds,  kind  words,  patience  and  in- 
dustry. Now  here  are  seeds  which,  if  scat- 
tered in  a  garden,  would  soon  grow  and 
spread  until  all  the  flowers  were  crowded 
out.  These  are  seeds  of  weeds  and  the  best 
thing  we  can  do  is  to  burn  them.  To  keep 
a  garden  free  from  weeds  requires  constant 


46         Experimental  Object  Lessons 

care,  and  to  keep  a  life  free  from  evil  requires 
just  as  much  care,  for  evil  habits  grow  like 
weeds  while  good  ones  have  to  be  cultivated 
like  flowers.  One  who  will  take  the  same 
pains  with  his  character  that  a  gardener  does 
with  his  garden,  carefully  keeping  out  the 
weeds  of  evil  and  patiently  cultivating  the 
good  will  be  repaid  in  his  old  age  and  in  the 
life  to  come.  We  are  given  the  privilege  of 
sowing  not  only  in  our  own  lives  but  also  in 
the  lives  of  others.  If  you  should  take  this 
acorn  and  go  into  your  neighbour's  yard 
some  time  and  drop  it  into  some  soft  ground, 
after  a  while  he  would  find  a  sturdy  oak  grow- 
ing in  his  yard.  He  might  never  know  who 
planted  it  there,  and  you  might  forget  it  as 
time  went  by,  but  there  would  stand  the  oak, 
and  as  it  grew  it  would  shade  your  neigh- 
bour's children  and  bring  comfort  to  many. 
So  as  we  go  through  life  we  can,  through  our 
conversations,  deeds  and  influence  scatter 
seeds  of  truth  and  beauty  into  the  lives 
around  us.  Simply  telling  the  story  of  Jesus 
to  some  one  may  cause  a  deep,  abiding  trust 
in  God  to  grow  up  in  that  heart  to  comfort 
it  in  all  its  future  life.  A  few  kind  words,  a 
smile  or  thoughtful  act  may  gready  brighten 
up  a  life  that  has  little  love  in  it. 

But  while  it  is  pleasant  to  think  how  we 


Seed  Time  and  Harvest  47 

can  scatter  good  seed  we  must  also  remem- 
ber that  if  weeds  grow  in  our  lives  their  seeds 
are  apt  to  blow  into  some  neighbouring  life 
where  they  will  do  much  harm.  See  these 
light  airy  seeds  with  the  white  feathery  tips. 
Who  has  not  patiently  dug  the  dandelions 
from  his  lawn  one  year  only  to  find  it  full  the 
next  year  because  of  seeds  brought  by  the 
wind  from  a  neighbouring  lawn  where  dan- 
delions were  allowed  to  go  to  seed  ?  The 
only  way  to  be  sure  that  seeds  from  our  bad 
habits,  careless  words  and  unkind  thoughts 
will  not  harm  any  one  else  is  to  get  them 
thoroughly  taken  out  of  our  own  hearts  and 
lives.  Now  I  am  sure  we  will  all  go  home 
determined  to  sow  seeds  of  beautiful  and 
good  things  in  our  own  lives  and  the  lives  of 
others.  Let  us  be  generous  with  our  seeds 
so  that  we  may  reap  a  large  harvest.  If  you 
will  read  Luke  viii.  5  to  16,  you  will  see 
what  Jesus  said  about  sowing  seed.  God 
gives  every  plant  a  large  amount  of  seed  be- 
cause some  is  sure  to  fall  on  rocky  soil  or  in 
some  place  where  it  cannot  grow.  So  we 
should  scatter  loving  seed  generously  and 
constantly  if  we  want  a  good  harvest,  be- 
cause we  cannot  be  sure  how  much  of  it  will 
take  root.  "  If  we  sow  sparingly  we  shall 
reap  also  sparmgly,  but  if  we  sow  abundantly 


48         Experimental  Object  Lessons 

we  shall  reap  also  abundantly"  (2  Cor.  ix.  6). 
Seed  which  is  kept  in  granaries  year  after 
year,  never  increases,  and  in  time  it  will  mil- 
dew and  mould  away  ;  while  if  it  were  sown 
broadcast  over  the  ground  it  would  feed 
thousands  of  people.  So  let  us  not  keep  our 
good  thoughts  and  impulses  locked  in  our 
own  breasts  but  give  them  expression  in 
words  and  deeds  that  they  may  benefit 
others. 


XIV 

POWER 

"  I  can  do  all  things  through  Christ  which  strengtheneth 
me." — Phil.  iv.  13. 

Materials :  A  small  piece  of  paper.  Some  water.  A 
smooth  piece  of  marble  or  stone.  A  piece  of  leather  on  a 
string.  With  a  darning-needle  thread  a  piece  of  twine  through 
the  leather,  making  the  knot  very  flat  and  small. 

We  all  like  to  read  the  wonderful  Bible 
stories.  It  is  thrilling  to  think  of  men  per- 
forming feats  of  strength  like  Samson  and 
of  winning  battles  against  great  odds  like 
Gideon,  while  the  story  of  the  boy  David 
slaying  the  mighty  Goliath  with  a  pebble 
always  interests  us  afresh.  We  also  read 
wonderful  accounts  of  men  who  are  nat- 
urally timid  becoming  suddenly  bold  and 
fearless,  of  men  who  were  simple  and  unedu- 
cated becoming  great  preachers,  and  of  peo- 
ple enduring  intense  suffering  without  a 
murmur.  We  sometimes  wonder  how  we 
would  appear  under  like  circumstances. 
Why  could  Peter  stand  up  before  an  im- 
mense multitude  and  fearlessly  preach  Christ 
one  day  when  but  a  short  time  before  he  had 
49 


50         Experimental  Object  Lessons 

denied  his  Lord  before  a  servant  girl?  Some- 
thing had  happened  to  Peter.  He  was  the 
same  man  only  with  more  power.  A  simple 
thing  can  change  many  ordinary  articles. 
Look  at  this  piece  of  paper.  A  baby  could 
pick  it  up  between  his  thumb  and  finger. 
But  let  us  wet  it  thoroughly  and  put  it  on  the 
table  here,  carefully  pressing  the  edges  down 
all  around,  and  now  who  can  lift  it  without 
destroying  it  ?  It  is  the  same  paper  but  the 
addition  of  a  little  water  has  given  it  great 
sticking  power.  Just  like  this  piece  of  leather. 
I  will  drop  it  on  the  floor  and  step  on  it  to 
press  it  down,  but  see,  it  comes  up  again 
easily  enough.  But  let  it  lie  in  this  water  a 
minute.  Now  we  will  drop  it  to  the  floor  and 
press  it  down  a  little  with  the  foot.  How 
hard  it  is  to  lift  it !  It  is  the  same  leather 
only  the  water  has  increased  its  power.  We 
will  drop  it  on  this  heavy  weight  and  press 
the  foot  upon  it  a  moment.  Now  see,  I  can 
lift  the  weight  and  carry  it  all  about  by  the 
string.  The  same  leather  only  with  so  much 
more  power.  Read  Acts  i.  8 :  "  Ye  shall  re- 
ceive power  after  that  the  Holy  Ghost  has 
come  upon  you."  Peter  became  courageous 
instead  of  cowardly  when  he  was  baptized 
with  the  Holy  Ghost.  It  was  the  same  Holy 
Spirit  who  made  heroes  of  all  the  noble  char- 


Power 


51 


acters  we  read  about  in  the  Old  Testament. 
The  Holy  Ghost  can  give  you  and  me  power 
to  stick  to  the  right  and  to  lift  others  up  with 
us  as  we  climb  to  higher  things. 


XV 


THE  HOLY  SPIRIT 

"  The  wind  bloweth  where  it  listeth,  and  thou  hearest  the 
sound  thereof,  but  canst  not  tell  whence  it  cometh  and  whither  it 
goeth  :  so  is  every  one  that  is  born  of  the  Spirit." — John  Hi.  8, 

Materials:  A  bottle.  A  funnel.  Some  moistened  paper 
and  some  water. 

The  most  common  things  are  the  hardest 
to  understand.  It  is  difficult  to  tell  in  words 
what  life  is.  Few  of  us  can  explain  air  or 
water.  We  can  tell  what  they  are  composed 
of,  perhaps,  but  we  cannot  comprehend  them, 
much  less  explain  them  to  others.  Yet  some 
people  are  foolish  enough  to  say  that  they 
will  not  believe  anything  they  cannot  under- 
stand. The  idea  of  the  Holy  Spirit  is  hard 
for  many  of  our  minds  to  grasp.  He  is 
likened  to  the  mysterious  wind  which  we  feel 
but  cannot  see.  Wind  is  air  in  motion.  The 
person  who  will  not  believe  in  anything  he 
cannot  understand  gladly  breathes  in  the  air 
and  benefits  from  it  without  thinking  whether 
he  understands  it  or  not.  Let  us  never  re- 
fuse to  believe  in  the  Holy  Spirit  because  He 
is  mysterious  like  the  air.  As  we  breathe  in 
52 


The  Holy  Spirit  53 

the  air  and  live  this  earthly  life  so  we  should 
take  in  the  Spirit  of  God  and  live  the  spiritual 
life.  We  do  not  have  to  understand  all  the 
mysteries  of  air  to  have  vigorous  physical 
life  nor  to  know  all  the  mysteries  of  God  to 
live  the  Christian  life.  Air  is  colourless  and 
transparent,  therefore  we  do  not  always  re- 
member that  it  fills  every  space  commonly 
called  empty.  Had  I  not  been  speaking  of 
air  and  suddenly  asked  you  what  this  bottle 
contained,  you  would  have  answered  quickly, 
"  nothing."  But  this  invisible  something  is 
strong  enough  to  hold  its  own  against  some- 
thing that  is  visible.  (Wrap  the  moistened 
paper  around  the  funnel  so  that  it  will  fit  ex- 
acdy  into  the  mouth  of  the  bottle.  Fill  the 
funnel  with  water  and  the  fluid  will  not  run 
into  the  bottle  as  the  air  will  not  allow  it  to 
enter.)  A  heart  which  is  filled  with  the  Spirit 
of  God  is  safe  against  the  attacks  of  the  evil 
one.  He  cannot  enter  as  long  as  we  are  filled 
to  the  brim  with  the  Spirit.  But  the  half- 
hearted Christian  is  in  danger.  (Raise  the 
funnel  enough  to  let  the  air  escape  and  the 
water  will  rush  in.) 


XVI 

THE  BURDEN  BEARER 

*«  Cast  thy  burden  upon  the  Lord  and  He  shall  sustain  thee. 
He  shall  never  suffer  the  righteous  to  be  moved." — Ps.  Iv.  22. 

Materials:  A  sheet  of  heavy  writing  paper.  A  basin  of 
vi^ater.     Twelve  or  fifteen  spools. 

Here  is  a  piece  of  writing  paper.  Is  it 
strong  looking?  Would  you  choose  it  if 
you  wanted  something  on  which  to  place  a 
number  of  articles,  all  more  or  less  heavy  ? 
(Place  a  spool  on  the  paper  as  you  hold  it 
extended  in  one  hand.)  No,  it  has  no  firm- 
ness at  all  and  sinks  under  even  a  slight 
weight.  This  paper  reminds  me  of  some 
people  fair  to  look  upon,  but  so  frail  appear- 
ing that  no  one  would  think  of  putting  bur- 
dens or  responsibilities  upon  them.  God, 
however,  often  lays  heavy  burdens  upon  frail 
shoulders.  Little  children  and  weak,  tender 
women  are  often  called  upon  to  bear  trials 
and  troubles  that  seem  far  out  of  proportion 
to  their  strength.  Some  sink  under  the 
burdens,  but  others  surprise  people  by  the 
strength  with  which  they  bear  their  heavy 
loads  of  trouble.  Let  us  see  now  if  there  is 
54 


The  Burden  Bearer  55 

not  a  way  by  which  this  paper  can  be  made 
to  hold  a  spool.  (Lay  paper  on  the  water, 
being  very  careful  to  drop  it  on  in  such  a  way 
that  no  water  creeps  over  the  edge.  Place  a 
spool  on  it.)  It  bears  it  easily  now,  does  it 
not  ?  If  I  take  the  spool  off  and  place  a  card 
on  the  paper  I  can  spin  a  top  on  it  without 
an  accident.  And  see,  I  can  place  spool  after 
spool  upon  it.  (Be  careful  that  no  water 
creeps  over  the  edge  of  the  paper  and  from 
twelve  to  fifteen  spools  can  be  laid  upon  it.) 
If  many  a  weak  person,  sinking  under  heavy 
burdens,  only  knew  that  by  casting  himself 
upon  the  love  and  mercy  of  God  he  could  be 
borne  up  and  enabled  to  carry  his  load 
easily,  how  much  less  sorrow  there  would  be 
in  the  world.  We  must  all  have  trials  and 
troubles.  God  in  His  loving  kindness  knows 
what  is  best  for  us,  and  to  each  and  all  He 
fits  a  burden.  Some  sink  under  their  load, 
but  it  is  not  because  the  load  is  too  great  for 
them,  but  because  they  insist  upon  trying  to 
bear  it  alone.  If  they  would  throw  them- 
selves upon  the  mercy  and  love  of  God  He 
would  bear  both  them  and  their  burden.  He 
has  promised  never  to  allow  us  to  be  bur- 
dened above  that  which  we  are  able  to  bear 
(i  Cor.  X.  13). 


XVII 

THE  WEB  OF  LIFE 

«  My  days  are  swifter  than  a  weaver's  shuttle." — Job  vii.  6. 

Materials  :  Weave  in  some  simple  fashion  a  small  web  of 
wool,  silk  or  cotton  threads.  Also  start  a  web  for  each  pupil. 
Provide  a  liberal  number  of  threads  of  different  colours  for  their 
use. 

See  what  a  pretty  little  web  I  have  woven. 
Here  is  one  I  have  started  for  each  of  you. 
You  may  take  them  home  with  you  when 
you  go  to  remember  our  lesson  by.  Our 
lives  are  like  webs.  Each  day  we  weave  into 
them  threads  of  different  kinds  of  deeds,  and 
so  the  web  grows  and  keeps  on  growing 
until  we  die.  We  are  at  liberty  to  try  to 
weave  in  just  the  kind  of  threads  we  wish  to. 
You  may  each  put  some  threads  in  your 
webs  now.  Take  any  you  wish  from  this 
pile.  Now  let  us  see.  Each  web  is  different, 
I  notice.  You  all  have  different  tastes  and 
so  have  chosen  different  colours  and  have 
woven  them  in  in  your  own  individual  way. 
Just  so  our  lives  are  all  different.  As  God 
looks  into  His  world  He  does  not  see  two 
lives  alike.  You  have  naturally  chosen  more 
56 


The  Web  of  Life  57 

bright  than  plain  threads,  and  yet  see  how 
many  more  plain  ones  there  are  than  bright 
ones  in  the  pile.  The  plain  threads  repre- 
sent the  common  every-day  deeds  which  we 
often  consider  of  no  consequence,  and  the 
bright  ones  represent  grand,  heroic  actions. 
How  we  should  like  to  fill  our  life  webs  en- 
tirely with  bright  threads  !  In  our  dreams 
we  are  all  heroes.  But  if  that  could  be ;  if 
we  all  had  every  day  some  grand,  heroic  deed 
to  perform,  what  would  become  of  the  homely 
every-day  duties  which  are  so  necessary  ? 
Who  would  work  in  the  office  or  store  to 
earn  the  living  ?  Who  would  cook  the  meals 
and  care  for  the  babies  ?  Who  would  run 
on  errands  and  bring  in  wood,  and  who 
would  study  the  lessons  ?  Some  poet  has 
truthfully  said : 

**  He  is  a  hero  who  will  stand  for  right 

Amid  a  crowd  afraid  the  wrong  to  face. 
He  also  who  will  stand  just  out  of  sight 
And  do  his  duty  in  a  lowly  place." 

Sometimes  our  duty  seems  to  lie  where  we 
can  reach  only  the  dull  gray  and  brown 
threads.  In  order  that  a  few  may  weave 
bright  webs  successfully  many  must  weave 
only  dull  ones.  But  as  God  looks  at  the 
webs    He    understands    exactly    why    each 


58         Experimental  Object  Lessons 

thread  was  woven,  and  perhaps  some  of  the 
dullest  appearing  webs  look  the  most  beau- 
tiful to  Him.  Have  any  of  you  woven  in 
one  of  the  black  threads  ?  They  represent 
sin,  and  it  is  very  hard  to  keep  them  out  of 
a  life  web.  Sometimes  they  get  tangled  in 
among  the  other  threads,  and  before  we 
realize  it  a  long  thread  of  black  is  woven  in, 
spoiling  our  web.  Can  we  get  it  out  ?  It 
may  be  possible  to  ravel  these  webs  we  have 
in  our  hands  and  pull  out  the  black  threads, 
but  who  can  go  back  into  his  past  and  take 
out  sin  ?  There  is  only  one  thing  to  do  if 
sin  has  been  woven  into  a  life  web.  That  is 
to  take  the  web  to  God  and  ask  Him  to  blot 
the  blackness  out  of  it.  How  much  better  it 
is  to  watch  our  web  each  day  as  we  weave 
it,  and  carefully  keep  out  all  black  threads. 
We  should  put  in  as  many  bright  ones  as 
we  can  without  neglecting  the  dull  ones. 
And  if  it  be  our  fortune  to  find  almost  all 
the  bright  ones  beyond  our  reach,  let  us 
weave  as  well  as  we  can  with  the  plain 
ones.  Our  heavenly  Father  has  a  way  of 
seeing  not  only  what  we  do  but  what  we 
would  like  to  do  also.  Sometimes  our  work 
becomes  tangled  and  we  despair  of  ever 
straightening  it.  At  such  times  it  is  best 
to  let  everything  drop  from  our  hands  into 


The  Web  of  Life  59 

the  wise  hands  of  God,  and  then  take,  one 
by  one,  the  threads  as  He  gives  them  to 
us,  weaving  on  patiently  until  all  becomes 
straight  again.  God  never  makes  a  mistake, 
and  if  we  weave  only  the  threads  He  gives 
us  we  will  never  be  ashamed  of  our  life  web 
whether  it  be  bright  or  plain. 


XVIII 

ENVIRONMENT 

"  Those  that  be  planted  in  the  house  of  the  Lord  shall  flour- 
ish in  the  courts  of  our  God." — Ps.  xcii,  ij. 

Materials  :  Bulbs  and  blossoms  of  tulips,  hyacinths,  crocus, 
or  gladiolus,  dahlias,  lilies,  etc. 

Where  did  these  beautiful  flowers  come 
from?  The  garden?  Certainly.  But  how 
did  they  happen  to  be  in  the  garden  ?  Yes, 
they  were  planted  there.  These  bulbs  hold 
safely  tucked  away  within  them  the  germs  of 
more  flowers  like  these  beautiful  ones.  It 
does  not  seem  possible,  does  it?  It  is  so 
wonderful  to  think  that  all  we  have  to  do  is 
to  surround  these  plain  looking  bulbs  with 
the  right  conditions  and  beautiful  flowers  will 
result.  What  are  the  proper  conditions? 
Earth,  water  and  sunshine.  That  is  all. 
But  suppose  we  keep  them  dry  and  out  of 
the  earth,  what  then?  They  will  remain  as 
they  are,  of  course.  No  fragrant  flowers  will 
come  from  them  and  until  the  time  comes 
when  they  dry  up  or  decay  they  will  amount 
to  nothing.  Did  you  ever  stop  to  think  that 
boys  and  girls  are  like  these  bulbs  in  a  cer- 
60 


Environment  61 

tain  way?  There  are  great  possibilities 
wrapped  up  in  every  child,  and  it  only  takes 
the  right  conditions  to  bring  out  happy  re- 
sults. Each  of  these  bulbs  produces  a 
different  kind  of  flower,  you  see.  So  there  are 
germs  of  different  things  lying  dormant  in 
the  natures  of  children  all  around  us.  Love, 
ambition,  patriotism,  eloquence,  music,  even 
genius.  We  never  can  tell  when  we  look 
at  a  bulb  exactly  what  kind  of  a  flower  it  will 
produce,  and  we  never  can  tell  when  we  look 
at  a  child  just  what  he  is  capable  of  becoming. 
What  are  the  proper  conditions  with  which 
to  surround  a  child  if  we  wish  to  bring  out 
the  best  that  is  within  him  ?  Surround  any 
child  with  love  and  intelligent  sympathy  and 
see  how  he  will  respond.  Then  make  him 
feel  and  know  the  smile  of  the  great  Sun  of 
Righteousness  (Mai.  iv.  2)  and  the  results  will 
come.  Love  and  sympathy  are  due  to  every 
child  from  his  parents,  but  as  we  know,  many 
children  do  not  receive  them,  and  many,  too, 
are  orphans.  Therefore  the  duty  of  giving 
out  a  helpful  influence  falls  upon  all  of  us. 
No  one  is  too  young  to  help  in  this  way  if  he 
is  old  enough  to  understand  it.  You  who 
are  blessed  with  loving  parents  can  share 
their  sympathy  with  your  less  favoured  com- 
panions.    Invite  your  young  friends  to  your 


62         Experimental  Object  Lessons 

home.     Give  them  of  your  own  love  and  try 
to  point  them  to  Jesus. 

A  bulb  is  very  helpless.  Unless  it  is  taken 
and  planted  by  some  kind  hand  it  must 
perish  without  fulfilling  its  mission.  A  child 
is  more  fortunate.  If  one  sees  that  he  is  not 
in  the  best  of  surroundings ;  sees  that  he  is 
not  growing  mentally  and  spiritually,  he  has 
the  power  to  change  his  circumstances.  If 
still  too  young  to  separate  himself  entirely 
from  his  surroundings,  he  can  at  least  form 
friendships  and  frequent  places  which  will 
stimulate  him  and  help  him  to  grow. 


XIX 

ALCOHOL  AND  THE  BRAIN 

"  Wine  is  a  mocker,  strong  drink  is  raging  ;  and  whosoever 
is  deceived  thereby  is  not  wise." — Prov.  xx.  i. 

Materials  :  One-fourth  glass  of  alcohol.  An  egg,  or  merely 
the  white  of  an  egg  if  preferred.     A  little  alcohol  in  a  saucer. 

What  is  this  which  I  have  in  a  saucer  ? 
Water?  Well,  let  us  see.  (Apply  Hghted 
match  to  it  and  it  will  burn.)  Did  you  ever 
see  water  burn  ?  No  ?  Then  what  is  this 
liquid  which  looks  so  much  like  water  but 
which  burns?  Read  Prov.  xxiii.  31  and 
Prov.  XX.  I.  Why  are  we  warned  against 
wine  and  all  strong  drink?  It  is  only  be- 
cause it  contains  this  innocent  looking  fluid 
which  is  called  alcohol.  There  is  from  forty 
to  fifty  per  cent,  of  alcohol  in  brandy  and 
whiskey.  Six  or  eight  per  cent,  in  ale  and 
porter  and  seven  to  seventeen  per  cent,  in 
wine.  When  alcohol  is  taken  into  the  system 
it  affects  all  parts  of  the  body  harmfully.  The 
delicate  lining  of  the  stomach  is  reddened 
and  every  tiny  vein  inflamed  just  as  the 
drunkard's  nose  is  swollen  and  discoloured. 
From  the  stomach  the  alcohol  passes  into  the 
blood  and  in  a  few  minutes  is  swept  through 
63 


64         Experimental  Object  Lessons 

the  entire  system.  Since  it  has  a  special 
greed  for  water,  it  absorbs  moisture  from  the 
red  corpuscles  of  the  blood,  causing  them  to 
shrink,  change  their  form,  harden,  and  lose 
some  of  their  ability  to  carry  oxygen.  Alcohol 
causes  the  lungs  to  retain  their  carbonic  acid 
gas  to  poison  the  system  ;  it  increases  the 
heart  beats  six  thousand  in  twenty-four  hours, 
thus  overworking  that  organ  so  that  after  a 
time  it  loses  its  old  power  to  drive  the  blood. 
But  while  alcohol  hurts  every  part  of  the 
body,  it  seems  to  have  a  special  affinity  for 
the  brain.  The  brain  is  composed  of  eighty 
per  cent,  water,  sever  per  cent,  albumen, 
some  fat  and  a  few  minor  substances.  It  is 
the  most  delicate  organ  of  the  body,  and  is 
correspondingly  affected.  The  tiny  vessels 
become  clogged  with  blood  that  it  is  unfitted 
to  nourish  because  loaded  with  carbonic  acid 
and  deprived  of  the  usual  quantity  of  life-giv- 
ing oxygen.  Some  authorities  hold  that  *'  a 
once  thoroughly  intoxicated  brain  never  fully 
becomes  what  it  was  before."  It  is  easy  to  re- 
alize this  when  we  remember  that  our  brain  is 
composed  mostly  of  water  and  albumen.  We 
have  some  alcohol  in  this  glass,  and  will  drop 
into  it  an  egg^  the  white  of  which  is  composed 
of  albumen  very  similar  to  that  of  our  brains. 
(Drop  in  the  egg ;  stir  it  a  little  and  it  will  cook.) 


XX 

THE  LIGHT  OF  THE  WORLD 

"  Then  spake  Jesus  unto  them,  saving,  I  am  the  light  of  the 
world." — John  viii.  12. 

Materials  :  Half  a  dozen  or  more  small  candles  of  different 
colours.  One  large  candle.  A  cup  large  enough  to  cover  a 
small  candle.  Cut  holes  in  a  pasteboard  box  cover  and  insert 
the  candles  or  use  candlesticks. 

Jesus,  our  Saviour,  has  been  called  by  a 
great  many  names.  He  is  very  often  re- 
ferred to  as  *'  the  light  of  the  world."  He 
Himself  calls  His  followers  lights  (Matt.  v.  14). 
We  want  to  talk  about  light  to-day  and  to 
make  it  interesting  we  need  some  light  here 
to  look  at.  What  can  we  use?  Yes,  we 
could  use  lamps,  gas,  electricity,  sunlight, 
etc.,  but  these  are  what  we  will  use  to-day. 
(Set  out  candles.)  We  are  apt  to  consider 
the  light  of  a  candle  too  small  to  amount  to 
much.  But  suppose  it  were  night,  and  by 
some  mistake  one  of  you  had  been  shut  into 
this  church  alone.  All  would  be  dark  around 
you ;  the  chandeliers  so  high  you  could  not 
reach  them,  and  you  would  have  no  matches 
with  which  to  light  the  gas-jets  or  lamps. 
Then  suppose  you  should  see  a  little  candle 
65 


66         Experimental  Object  Lessons 

burning  like  this.  (Light  a  small  candle.) 
Would  you  not  be  glad  to  see  it?  And 
which  would  you  like  best,  the  little  lighted 
candle,  or  the  great  electric  chandelier  which 
was  unlighted  ?  Sometimes  a  little  Chris- 
tian boy  or  girl  does  more  good  in  the  world 
than  a  grown-up  person  who  does  not  live 
for  God.  But  the  little  candle  would  do  no 
good  if  it  were  like  this.  (Extinguish  it.) 
And  can  it  light  itself  ?  Can  boys  and  girls 
make  themselves  into  Christians  ?  How  then 
shall  we  become  lighted  ?  (Read  Ps.  xviii.  28.) 
God  is  the  only  one  who  has  power  to  make 
us  shine.  If  one  of  you  should  go  home 
to-day  with  a  desire  to  become  a  Christian 
light  in  the  world  all  you  would  have  to  do 
would  be  to  ask  God  to  light  you,  and  then 
leave  the  rest  to  Him  and  just  commence  to 
shine.  (Light  a  candle.)  But  now  suppose 
that  a  boy  is  timid,  and  so  decides  that  he 
will  be  a  Christian  but  will  not  tell  any  one 
about  it.  What  about  his  light  then  ?  (Read 
Matt.  V.  15.)  We  will  put  this  cover  over 
the  candle.  (Cover  with  cup.)  How  much 
good  is  that  light  doing  in  the  world  ?  (Un- 
cover it.)  And  see,  the  light  has  gone  out. 
The  only  way  to  be  a  Christian  is  to  let 
your  light  shine.  If  you  try  to  hide  it  it 
will  not  only  fail  to  light  others,  but  it  will 


The  Light  of  the  World  67 

go  out  itself.  (Light  a  candle.)  Now  we 
will  let  this  candle  represent  a  Christian  girl. 
If  she  looks  around  and  sees  her  friends  all 
unlighted  what  will  she  wish  to  do  ?  Light 
them,  yes.  Well,  if  she  stays  where  she  is 
and  wishes  all  her  life,  will  it  do  any  good  ? 
No,  she  must  go  to  them.  (Light  another 
candle  with  the  first.)  Which  will  it  be  the 
most  sensible  for  her  to  try  to  light,  the  one 
farthest  from  her  ?  No,  the  nearest,  of  course. 
We  have  more  opportunity  to  help  our 
brothers  and  sisters  and  intimate  friends  than 
those  miles  away  from  us  ;  but  these  in  turn 
can  carry  the  light  to  others.  (Light  all  the 
small  candles.)  Now  do  any  of  these  give 
a  fainter  light  because  they  lighted  others 
from  their  own  flames  ?  No,  and  Christians 
never  grow  weaker  by  helping  other  people. 
Do  all  these  candles  look  alike  to  you  ?  No, 
they  are  of  different  colours.  So  there  are 
many  kinds  of  people  in  the  world.  Can 
you  mention  some  ?  Yes ;  sick,  well,  rich, 
poor,  pretty,  plain,  bright,  dull — all  kinds  of 
people  can  shine  for  Jesus,  and  the  light  is 
as  beautiful  from  one  as  from  another,  be- 
cause it  all  comes  from  God.  Now,  I  know 
you  all  want  the  large  candle  lighted.  What 
shall  we  have  it  represent  ?  It  is  larger  than 
the  others,  so  should  it  not  represent  a  grown 


68         Experimental  Object  Lessons 

person?  A  father  or  mother  of  one  of  the 
little  ones  perhaps.  How  can  it  be  lighted  ? 
Do  you  think  one  of  the  little  ones  could 
light  so  large  a  candle  ?  (Light  it  with  a 
small  one.)  Yes,  often,  very  often,  little  chil- 
dren lead  their  parents  to  Christ.  This  is 
the  most  beautiful  work  that  a  little  Christian 
can  do.  Now  we  have  the  lights  all  shining 
together.  How  much  more  light  they  seem 
to  give  than  they  would  if  they  were  far 
apart,  each  shining  alone.  Sometimes  peo- 
ple say  that  there  is  no  use  in  belonging  to  a 
church ;  that  people  can  be  just  as  good 
Christians  by  themselves.  It  is  true  that  one 
can  be  a  Christian  and  not  a  church-member, 
but  the  light  of  a  great  many  Christians  all 
shining  together  makes  a  large  beam  of  light 
shining  through  a  dark  world,  and  it  is  a 
great  privilege  to  be  able  to  mingle  our  light 
with  others,  and  so  help  to  send  brightness 
out  to  help  those  whom  we  might  never 
reach  alone. 


XXI 

FORGIVENESS  OF  SINS 

"If  we  confess  our  sins,  He  is  faithful  and  just  to  forgive  us 
our  sins,  and  to  cleanse  us  from  all  unrighteousness." — /  John 
i.g. 

Materials :  Half  a  glass  of  water.  Three  cents'  worth  of 
tincture  of  iodine.  Two  cents'  worth  of  hyposulphite  of  soda. 
Make  a  strong  solution  of  the  soda  by  putting  into  a  small 
bottle  of  water  as  much  of  it  as  the  water  will  dissolve. 

What  have  we  in  this  glass  ?  Yes,  water. 
Does  it  not  look  clear  and  sparkling  and  pure? 
We  will  use  it  to-day  to  represent  a  pure  heart. 
I  wonder  if  any  of  us  can  feel  that  it  truly 
represents  our  hearts?  Temptations  come 
to  children  so  early  in  life,  and  are  so  hard 
to  resist,  that  it  is  difificult  to  keep  the  heart 
pure.  As  one  little  temptation  after  another 
is  yielded  to,  a  change,  something  like  this, 
takes  place  in  the  heart.  (Pour  iodine  into 
the  water,  a  few  drops  at  a  time.)  See, 
the  water  has  lost  its  clearness  and  become 
stained  and  impure.  No  one  becomes  a 
great  sinner  suddenly.  It  is  one  little  sin 
leading  to  another,  and  another,  and  another, 
that  finally  changes  a  heart  from  purity  to 
blackness.  (Make  the  water  as  dark  as  possi- 
69 


yo         Experimental  Object  Lessons 

ble  with  iodine.)  I  am  sure  that  no  heart  in 
this  class  is  black  enough  to  be  represented 
by  this  water  as  it  is  now.  But  let  us  turn 
to  Matt.  V.  8,  and  see  what  Jesus  says ;  and 
we  will  also  look  up  Rev.  xxi.  27.  You  see, 
it  is  only  the  pure  in  heart  who  shall  see  God 
and  inherit  the  kingdom  of  heaven.  Al- 
though we  may  not  feel  that  our  hearts  are 
entirely  black,  still  we  cannot  feel  either  that 
they  are  as  pure  as  the  water  we  saw  in  the 
first  place.  So  unless  we  can  find  some  more 
encouraging  words  in  the  Bible,  we  might 
feel  discouraged  and  hopeless.  But  now  look 
up  I  John  i.  9.  This  certainly  brings  us  good 
news.  We  cannot  understand  it.  We  cannot 
see  how  Jesus  can  take  a  heart  that  is  stained 
with  sin  and  make  it  pure  again.  But  since 
He  promises  to  do  so,  we  need  have  no  fear. 
Many  things  are  hard  to  understand.  I  will 
drop  some  of  this  clear  liquid  into  this  black 
water  and  we  shall  see  what  will  happen.  (Put 
in  a  few  drops  of  the  hyposulphite  of  soda 
solution  and  the  water  will  clear  instandy.) 
All  we  have  to  do  is  to  confess  our  sins  and 
trust  Him  for  the  rest. 


XXII 

THE  WATER  OF  LIFE 

"  I  will  take  the  cup  of  salvation,  and  call  upon  the  name 
of  the  Lord." — Ps.  cxvi.  13. 

Materials  :  A  telescope  cup,  a  beautiful  and  costly  cup,  a 
tin  cup,  a  soiled  cup  and  a  cracked  cup. 

In  the  fourth  chapter  of  John,  Jesus  alludes 
to  Himself  as  **  the  Water  of  Life."  Water 
is  an  absolute  necessity  to  life.  One  can  live 
longer  without  food  than  without  water.  As 
a  person  walking  on  a  very  hot  day  soon  be- 
comes thirsty,  so  many  people  are  thirsting 
for  the  Water  of  Life.  Most  of  them  do  not 
know  what  it  is  that  they  yearn  for,  and  try 
to  satisfy  their  craving  with  different  things. 
They  strive  for  wealth  or  fame,  or  they  run 
after  excitement  and  pleasure  ;  but  even  when 
they  succeed  in  gratifying  their  ambitions 
they  still  find  themselves  unsatisfied.  Noth- 
ing but  water  will  quench  physical  thirst  and 
nothing  but  Jesus  can  satisfy  a  human  soul. 

What  are  cups  for?  Yes,  to  hold  liquid 
and  to  drink  from.  Here  is  a  very  odd  one. 
It  is  called  a  telescope  cup,  and  people  often 
take  such  cups  with  them  when  travelling,  as 
they  can  be  folded  up  and  put  in  a  little  box. 
71 


72         Experimental  Object  Lessons 

When  I  unfold  only  one  section  of  this  cup, 
it  holds  water  (fill  it)  but  what  a  small 
amount.  A  thirsty  person  would  not  be 
satisfied  with  such  a  drink.  That  is  like  the 
people  who  open  their  hearts  only  a  little 
way  for  the  refreshing  Water  of  Life.  As  far 
as  they  will  let  Him  Jesus  will  come  in.  But 
how  foolish  a  thirsty  traveller  would  be  not 
to  open  his  cup  to  the  full  extent,  like  this 
(open  and  fill  the  cup),  and  take  a  satisfying 
drink.  And  how  much  better  it  is  to  throw 
the  heart's  door  wide  open  to  Jesus  and  let 
Him  come  in  and  satisfy  all  cravings.  Now 
here  are  two  cups  which  are  very  unlike. 
One  is  of  fine  and  beautiful  china  and  the 
other  of  common  tin.  Does  the  water  taste 
differently  when  drunk  from  these  cups  ?  (Let 
the  children  taste.)  No  indeed.  Well,  per- 
haps some  of  you  think  that  the  water  from 
the  beautiful  cup  was  the  best,  but  that  is 
only  your  imagination.  If  your  eyes  had 
been  closed  you  could  not  have  told  the  dif- 
ference. The  Water  of  Life  is  the  same 
everywhere,  although  some  people  think 
they  can  only  enjoy  it  in  a  fine  and  beau- 
tiful house,  while  others  find  it  easier  to 
take  it  from  a  more  humble  place.  For  this 
reason  there  are  all  sorts  of  churches  in  the 
world,  from  the  grand  cathedral  to  the  Salva- 


The  Water  of  Life  73 

tion  Army  hall.  But  it  is  the  same  Water  of 
Life  that  refreshes  people  in  all  these  places. 
There  is  only  one  cup  here  from  which  you 
could  not  get  a  good  drink  of  water.  Which 
is  that  ?  Yes,  the  soiled  cup.  This  is  unfit 
to  drink  from.  A  person  who  is  not  clean  in 
his  own  heart  and  life  cannot  be  the  means 
of  giving  the  pure  Water  of  Life  to  others. 
It  is  necessary  for  us  to  ask  Christ  to  both 
make  and  keep  us  clean  if  we  desire  to  help 
relieve  the  thirst  of  a  sin-sick  world.  What 
lesson  can  we  learn  from  this  cracked  cup  ? 
It  can  be  filled  with  water,  can  it  not  ?  What 
then  is  the  trouble?  The  water  leaks  out, 
and  in  a  short  time  the  cup  will  be  as  empty 
as  before  it  was  filled.  To  our  sorrow  we 
must  acknowledge  that  most  of  us  greatly 
resemble  this  cracked  cup.  We  are  often 
filled  to  the  very  brim  with  the  Water  of  Life. 
After  a  good  sermon  or  meeting,  or  after 
reading  a  good  book  or  spending  a  time  in 
prayer  we  are  full  of  love  and  good  resolu- 
tions. But  after  a  short  time  where  have  they 
all  gone  ?  We  are  empty  again,  and  in  order 
to  be  of  any  use  to  our  fellow  beings  we  must 
again  be  filled  with  the  Water  of  Life.  Hap- 
pily for  us  our  Lord  has  told  us  to  come  to  Him 
freely  whenever  we  are  athirst  (Rev.  xxii.  17) 
and  partake  of  the  Water  of  Life  (Isa.  Iv.  i). 


XXIII 
GOD^S  WAY  OF  FORGIVING 

«« I,  even  I,  am  He  that  blotteth  out  thy  transgressions  for 
Mine  own  sake,  and  will  not  remember  thy  sins." — ha.  xliii.  2j. 

Materials  :  A  piece  of  thin  silk.  Five  cents'  worth  of  the 
strongest  nitric  acid.  The  fumes  of  nitric  acid  are  strong  and 
strangling.  No  teacher  should  use  this  object  lesson  unless  he 
is  sure  of  being  able  to  keep  his  own  and  the  children's  faces 
well  away  from  it. 

In  disposing  of  strong  acids  after  a  lesson,  do  not  throw  them 
into  a  sink  as  they  will  eat  into  the  lead  pipes.  The  best  way 
is  to  bury  them  in  the  ground.     Never  put  water  into  acids. 

There  is  a  beautiful  old  legend  which  tells 
of  some  one  meeting  Love  as  she  returned 
from  burying  a  wrong.  Upon  being  asked, 
**  Where  did  you  bury  it?  "  she  replied,  with 
a  bright  smile,  "  I  forget."  This  is  the  ideal 
way  of  forgiving,  but  it  is  hard  for  most  of 
us  to  attain  to  it. 

It  is  almost  impossible  for  us  not  to  con- 
sider God  from  a  human  standpoint,  and  at- 
tribute to  Him  the  same  kind  of  feelings 
which  we  ourselves  possess.  We  are  told 
over  and  over  in  the  Bible  that  after  God 
forgives  our  sins  He  remembers  them  no 
more,  and  yet  we  often  worry  ourselves  over 
faults  committed  and  repented  of  weeks, 
74 


God's  Way  of  Forgiving  75 

months  and  even  years  ago.  They  were  real 
sins  and  it  is  hard  for  us  to  reaHze  that  any 
real  thing  can  ever  be  entirely  done  away 
with.  Here  is  a  piece  of  silk.  It  is  a  real 
thing  which  we  can  see  and  handle,  yet  it 
can  be  entirely  destroyed.  (Drop  the  silk 
into  the  nitric  acid  and  within  a  few  seconds 
it  will  entirely  vanish.)  It  is  the  same  way 
with  a  sin  that  has  been  truly  repented  of. 
When  God  forgives  He  does  it  wholly  and 
generously.  He  utterly  destroys  the  sin  and 
makes  it  as  though  it  never  had  been,  and 
then  He  remembers  it  no  more.  We  can 
look  up  into  His  face  with  clear  eyes  and  not 
torment  ourselves  by  thinking  that  a  sin  is 
between  us  and  Him  and  that  perhaps  at 
that  moment  He  is  thinking  of  it.  The  in- 
stant He  forgives  it,  the  sin  is  gone ;  it  has 
utterly  vanished  leaving  no  trace  behind  to 
mar  our  communion  with  God. 


XXIV 

AFFLICTION 

"  For  our  light  affliction,  which  is  but  for  a  moment,  worketh 
for  us  a  far  more  exceeding  and  eternal  weight  of  glory." — 
2  Cor.  iv.  17, 

Materials:  A  little  common  sand  or  earth  of  any  kind. 
Some  lead  or  iron  filings.  The  filings  may  be  gotten  from  a 
blacksmith  shop,  or  by  simply  using  a  good  file  on  any  old 
piece  of  lead  pipe.  Lycopodium  powder  may  be  used  in  place 
of  the  filings  if  desired.     A  candle. 

For  some  good  reason,  it  is  a  part  of  God's 
great  plan  to  allow  us  all  to  suffer  more  or 
less  pain  as  we  go  through  life.  Knowing, 
as  we  do,  the  wonderful  love  and  tenderness 
of  God,  the  question  comes  to  us,  "  Why  does 
God  allow  people  to  suffer?"  We  can  see 
that  some  bring  their  troubles  upon  them- 
selves, but  many  innocent  and  good  people 
have  to  suffer ;  little  children  as  well  as  grown 
people.  It  is  not  wrong  for  us  to  ask  ques- 
tions about  God's  dealings  with  us.  Since 
He  gave  us  a  mind  to  think  with,  He  is  will- 
ing we  should  use  it,  as  far  as  we  are  able. 
,It  would  be  very,  very  foolish  of  us,  however, 
to  expect  to  understand  God.  A  litde  child 
cannot  understand  all  the  things  which  his 
76 


Affliction  77 

earthly  father  knows,  and  the  most  intel- 
lectual man  in  the  world  is  far  less  capable 
of  understanding  God  than  a  child  is  of  un- 
derstanding a  man.  The  problem  of  human 
suffering  is,  and  probably  always  will  be, 
something  of  a-  mystery  to  us.  But  we  can 
observe  some  of  its  effects  and  perhaps  that 
will  help  us.  If  we  had  the  proper  things 
here  to  use,  we  could  show  that  the  same  fire 
which  softens  and  melts  gold,  hardens  clay. 
Affliction  never  leaves  a  person  as  it  finds 
him.  He  is  either  better  or  worse  for  it.  If 
he  has  a  fine  Christian  character,  like  gold, 
he  will  be  softened  and  purified  by  pain ;  if 
he  is  earthly  minded  he  will  be  hardened 
(Job  xxiii.  10).  I  will  light  this  candle  and 
drop  two  different  materials  through  the 
flame  and  you  will  see  how  differently  they 
act  under  fire.  (Light  the  candle  and  sprinkle 
some  of  the  lead  or  iron  through  the  flame.) 
How  beautifully  this  shines  and  gives  out 
brightness  as  it  passes  through  the  fire 
which  consumes  it  I  Now  see,  I  will  sprinkle 
this  earth  through.  Does  it  give  light?  No, 
it  is  as  dull  and  dark  as  ever.  Until  the  lead 
was  tried  by  fire,  it  also  was  dull  and  gave 
out  no  brightness.  Paul  tells  us  (Rom.  v.  3, 4) 
that  we  ought  to  glory  when  we  pass  through 
tribulation  because  it  gives  us  an  opportunity 


78         Experimental  Object  Lessons 

to  show  forth  patience,  hope  and  other  virtues. 
Many  people  shine  more  for  God  when  on 
beds  of  pain  than  at  any  other  time  in  their 
lives.  Such  sweet  influences  have  gone  out 
from  the  couches  of  some  chronic  invalids 
that  whole  neighbourhoods  or  villages  have 
been  uplifted.  The  one  who  suffers  seldom 
realizes  that  his  patient  bearing  of  pain  and 
submission  to  God's  will  are  accomplishing 
anything  for  God.  There  will  be  sweet 
surprises  awaiting  many  a  soul  in  heaven. 
When  our  time  comes  to  bear  pain  let  us  do 
it  in  the  manner  represented  by  the  lead  and 
not  by  the  sand.  It  will  be  easier  for  us  to 
do  this  if  we  can  remember  that  God  will 
never  allow  anything  to  happen  to  us  which 
we  would  not  be  perfectly  willing  to  have 
happen  if  we  were  wise  enough  to  see  things 
as  He  sees  them. 


XXV 

CHARACTER  FORMING 

"  Grow  in  grace,  and  in  the  knowledge  of  our  Lord  and 
Saviour  Jesus  Christ." — 2  Peter  iiu  18. 

Materials :  A  few  sheets  of  photographic  printing-paper 
and  a  printing-frame.  Two  negatives,  one  of  a  beautiful  scene 
or  person  and  the  other  of  an  unpleasant  or  repulsive  object. 
If  the  printing-frame  and  negatives  are  not  procurable,  a  piece 
of  window  glass  as  large  as  the  sheets  of  paper  may  be  substi- 
tuted for  the  frame,  and  instead  of  the  negatives  may  be  used 
two  pieces  of  lace,  one  new  and  of  a  graceful  pattern  and  the 
other  torn  and  disfigured  as  much  as  possible.  This  lesson 
must  be  given  in  a  sunny  location.  If  there  is  not  sufficient 
sunshine  in  the  class  room  it  might  be  well  to  have  the  children 
gather  on  the  church  lawn  for  one  Sunday. 

Have  you  ever  seen  printing-paper  such 
as  photographers  use  ?  Perhaps  some  of 
you  own  cameras  and  know  how  to  take  and 
print  pictures  for  yourselves.  I  have  some 
printing-paper  here  to-day.  It  is  very  sensi- 
tive and  commences  to  change  colour  as  soon 
as  it  is  exposed  to  the  light.  In  this  respect  it 
is  a  good  symbol  of  the  human  mind.  A 
little  child's  mind  is  blank  when  he  enters 
life,  but  it  is  very  sensitive,  like  this  paper, 
and  as  soon  as  the  child  is  old  enough  to 
understand  some  things  that  are  going  on 
79 


8o         Experimental  Object  Lessons 

around  him,  his  mind  begins  to  take  on  col- 
our, as  we  might  say,  and  his  character  com- 
mences to  form.  I  have  two  negatives  here 
(or  two  pieces  of  lace)  which  I  am  going  to 
lay  against  the  sensitive  side  of  two  of  these 
sheets  of  paper.  Now  we  will  place  these 
glasses  over  them  and  lay  them  where  the 
sun  will  shine  on  them  for  a  few  minutes. 
Have  any  of  you  got  baby  brothers  or  sisters 
at  home  ?  Yes,  nearly  all  of  you  have. 
Well,  then,  have  you  ever  noticed  how 
quickly  baby  learns  to  do  as  those  around 
him  are  doing  ?  If  he  sees  the  older  children 
quarreling  how  quickly  his  litde  hand  learns 
to  strike,  but  if  he  sees  every  one  in  the  fam- 
ily treating  each  other  wdth  gentle  kindness 
he  soon  learns  to  be  sweet  and  well-mannered 
himself.  Let  us  look  at  our  papers  now. 
Is  not  this  a  beautiful  picture  ?  Yes,  we  all 
admire  it.  How  do  you  like  this  one  ?  Not 
at  all?  It  is  unpleasant — hideous — horrid? 
Why,  what  is  the  matter?  Why  should  it 
not  be  as  attractive  as  the  first  picture  ?  It 
was  printed  on  as  good  a  piece  of  paper, 
and  stayed  as  long  a  time  in  the  sunshine, 
and  occupied  as  good  a  place  as  the  other. 
Oh,  the  negatives  were  different  ?  Yes,  that 
is  the  point.  The  sensitive  side  of  one  piece 
of  paper  was  pressed  closely  against  a  beau- 


Character  Forming  8l 

tiful  object  while  that  of  the  other  was  in 
close  touch  with  something  unlovely.  So  it 
is  that  our  characters  are  formed.  Uncon- 
sciously to  ourselves  we  take  colour  from  our 
surroundings  and  associates.  If  we  keep 
close  to  truth  and  honour  these  qualities  will 
print  themselves  indelibly  upon  our  charac- 
ters, while  if  we  keep  ourselves  in  close  touch 
with  things  that  are  impure  or  low,  the  char- 
acters we  form  must  of  necessity  be  lacking 
in  all  that  is  noble  and  good.  After  a  pic- 
ture is  printed  can  it  be  changed  ?  Well,  let 
us  see.  We  will  put  a  piece  of  paper  against 
this  ugly  negative  again,  but  will  remove  it 
before  it  has  been  there  long  enough  to  re- 
ceive much  of  an  impression,  and  will  place 
it  against  this  good  negative.  A  little  child 
cannot  help  his  environment ;  he  is  helpless 
until  he  reaches  the  age  where  he  is  capable 
of  choosing  his  own  associates.  If  as  soon 
as  that  time  arrives  he  exerts  his  power  to 
remove  himself  from  evil,  and  places  himself 
in  touch  with  good,  there  is  hope  for  him. 
Let  us  look  at  our  picture  now.  We  find 
that  the  imprint  of  the  beautiful  negative  is 
clear  and  plain  upon  the  paper.  Perhaps  by 
looking  closely  we  can  see  traces  of  the  first 
negative,  but  they  are  too  faint  to  interfere 
materially  with  the   beauty   of  the   picture. 


82         Experimental  Object  Lessons 

Cannot  God  help  a  person  who  has  allowed 
evil  instead  of  good  to  become  deeply  im- 
printed upon  his  character  ?  God  is  always 
merciful,  and  no  matter  how  unlovely  a  soul 
presents  itself  for  forgiveness,  He  will  blot 
out  its  sins  and  remember  them  no  more,  but 
more  than  this  He  cannot  do.  We  will  put 
this  ugly  print  in  the  strong  sunshine  for  a 
few  moments  and  you  will  soon  lose  sight  of 
all  outlines.  The  picture  will  be  blotted  out 
entirely  and  the  paper  will  be  all  of  one  col- 
our. It  is  a  happy  thing  for  the  world  that 
God  will  blot  out  sins,  but  after  all,  when  we 
compare  the  print  that  is  all  of  one  colour 
with  this  beautiful  picture,  a  thought  of  sad- 
ness comes  to  us.  Although  God  in  His 
goodness  forgives  the  sins  He  cannot  make 
the  ill-spent  lives  show  beautiful  pictures  of 
good  deeds  and  thoughts.  These  can  only 
be  printed  in  the  character  by  the  one  who 
lives  the  life.  I  am  sure  you  and  I  all  want 
our  characters  to  show  good  and  not  evil. 
The  Bible  tells  us  that  **  there  is  a  friend  that 
sticketh  closer  than  a  brother  "  (Prov.  xviii. 
24).  Do  you  know  who  that  friend  is  ?  Yes, 
it  is  the  Lord  Jesus.  It  is  our  privilege  to 
live  so  close  to  that  friend  that  we  shall  grow 
like  Him,  and  as  His  was  the  only  perfect 
life  which  was  ever  lived  it  is  the  highest 


Character  Forming  83 

ideal  that  we  can  set  before  ourselves.  To 
keep  close  to  our  Divine  Friend,  and  to  see  to 
it  that  the  human  friends  whom  we  choose 
are  of  the  right  kind,  should  be  our  effort  if 
we  wish  to  form  characters  which  will  be 
beautiful  in  the  sight  of  God. 


XXVI 

HELPFUL  CHRISTIANITY 

"  Ye  are  the  salt  of  the  earth." — Matt.  v.  ij. 
Materials:     Two  tall  glasses,  one  containing  clear  water 
and  one  very  strong  salt  water.     An  egg. 

In  His  sermon  on  the  mount  Jesus  called 
His  followers  "  the  salt  of  the  earth."  Has  it 
ever  seemed  strange  to  you  that  He  should 
use  such  a  symbol  as  salt  to  represent  holy 
lives  ?  You  know  that  salt  has  an  unpleasant 
taste,  and  you  do  not  care  for  it  at  all  except 
as  a  seasoning  in  your  food,  so  at  first  it  is 
somewhat  puzzling.  However,  there  must 
be  some  spiritual  lesson  to  be  learned  from 
salt  or  else  Jesus  would  not  have  spoken  in 
this  way,  so  let  us  think  about  it  for  a  mo- 
ment. Palestine  has  salt  in  abundance.  The 
Dead  Sea  is  saturated  with  it  and  great  lumps 
are  found  on  the  shores  where  the  sea  has 
overflowed  in  the  rainy  season.  At  the 
southwestern  end  of  the  Dead  Sea  there  is  a 
plain  of  considerable  extent,  the  soil  of  which 
is  entirely  covered  with  salt.  On  account  of 
this,  Jesus  knew  that  His  hearers  were  all 
well  accustomed  to  the  appearance  of  salt 
84 


Helpful  Christianity  85 

and  knew  its  usefulness.  Jesus  always  used 
very  familiar  and  common  objects  to  draw 
His  lessons  from.  Can  you  tell  me  one  way 
in  which  salt  is  used  ?  Yes,  to..s£ason  our 
food.  Do  you  know  of  still  another  use  it 
has  ?  Yes,  to  preserve  and  keep  things  from 
spoiling.  Meat  and  other  things  can  be  kept 
in  good  condition  for  a  long  time  by  the 
proper  use  of  salt.  It  is  for  these  reasons 
that  Jesus  likens  His  disciples  to  salt.  As 
salt  makes  food  savoury,  so  Christians  improve 
a  community  by  their  good  instruction  and 
example.  What  would  your  town  be  with- 
out its  Christian  churches,  hospitals  and 
faithful,  earnest  Christian  people?  And  as 
salt  keeps  things  from  spoiling  so  Christians 
in  a  neighbourhood  keep  many  tempted  people 
from  being  lost  in  sin.  Suppose  a  young 
person  leaves  home  and  goes  away  among 
strangers.  If  he  enters  a  certain  class  of 
society  he  is  almost  sure  to  fall  into  sin,  while 
if  he  is  fortunate  enough  to  find  himself 
thrown  among  Christian  influences  he  will  be 
upheld  in  his  good  intentions  and  efforts. 
Let  us  illustrate.  Here  are  two  glasses  of 
water.  One  contains  salt  and  the  other  does 
not.  We  will  drop  an  egg  into  the  fresh 
water.  What  happens  ?  It  sinks  to  the 
bottom.     Now  take  it  out  and  put  it  into  the 


86         Experimental  Object  Lessons 

other  glass.  See,  it  floats  on  top  and  does 
not  sink.  The  salt  in  this  water  buoys  it  up 
and  enables  it  to  float,  just  as  the  helpful 
sympathy  and  loving  interest  of  Christians  in 
a  community  buoy  up  a  tempted  soul  and 
enable  it  to  keep  on  top  of  its  trials  and  not 
sink  into  a  life  of  sin.  The  salt  in  order  to 
do  this  must  be  genuine.  There  are  sub- 
stances which  so  closely  resemble  salt  that  it 
is  hard  to  tell  them  apart.  If  anything  except 
salt  had  been  dissolved  in  this  water  the  egg 
would  have  sunk  to  the  bottom  of  the  glass 
just  as  it  did  in  the  other  tumbler.  Nothing 
but  genuine  Christianity  has  the  power  to 
uplift  humanity.  Let  us  see  to  it  that  our 
religion  is  true  and  sincere  so  that  we  may 
be  numbered  among  "  the  salt  of  the  earth." 


XXVII 
OUR  SPECTACLES 

"  For  now  we  see  through  a  glass,  darkly ;  but  then  face  to 
face." — /  Cor.  xiii.  12. 

Materials:  A  magnifying  glass.  Enough  small  pieces  to 
supply  all  your  scholars  of  common  window  glass,  blue,  red 
and  frosted  glass,  also  pieces  of  window  glass  smoked.  The 
glass  can  be  bought  and  cut  into  the  desired  sizes  at  a  hard- 
ware store. 

How  many  bright  eyes  I  see  before  me ! 
Blue,  gray,  brown  and  black.     Do  any  look 
through  glasses  ?     Yes,  a  few.     What  a  bless- 
ing glasses  are  !     In  the  old  days  no  one  but 
grandpa  and  grandma  wore  them,  but  now 
many  little  children's  eyes  are  strengthened 
and  often  cured  of  incipient  diseases  by  the 
wise  use  of  glasses.     I  have  here  some  pieces 
of  glass  of  different  kinds  which  we  will  look 
through   and    talk   about.     Then   when   we 
have  finished  you  will  each  have  a  little  col- 
lection to  carry  home  with  you  to  remember 
our  lesson  by.     First  come  these  blue  glasses. 
How  do  things  look  through  them  ?     Pretty  ? 
Well,  yes,  the  novelty  makes  it  seem  so,  but 
are  things  as  bright  and  clear  as  when  viewed 
with  the  natural  eye?    No.     Have  you  ever 
87 


88         Experimental  Object  Lessons 

heard  people  say  that  they  have  "  the  blues  "  ? 
What  do  they  mean?  Yes,  they  mean  that 
things  seem  dark  and  gloomy  to  them.  How 
sad  it  is  to  be  afflicted  with  '*  the  blues."  Not 
only  the  sufferer  is  to  be  pitied  but  all  as- 
sociated with  him  must  feel  the  depressing 
effects  of  the  disease — if  we  may  call  it  a 
disease.  Is  there  any  good  reason  for  people 
looking  at  the  world  through  blue  spectacles? 
Oh,  no  indeed  !  It  is  true  that  many  have 
grave  sorrows  and  troubles  to  bear,  but  with 
the  burdens  also  comes  strength  with  which 
to  bear  them,  if  one  is  willing  to  accept  it. 
It  is  not  usually  the  heavily  afflicted  people 
who  are  subject  to  the  blues.  It  is  more  apt 
to  be  idle  people  who  fall  into  the  habit  of 
brooding  over  small  ills.  When  God  has 
created  for  us  so  beautiful  a  world,  and  has 
showered  upon  each  one  of  us  more  blessings 
than  we  can  possibly  number,  how  ungrate- 
ful it  is  for  us  to  look  gloomily  through  blue 
glasses,  thus  destroying  our  own  joy  and 
marring  that  of  others. 

Here  are  some  different  coloured  glasses. 
Yes,  they  make  you  exclaim  in  delight. 
Everything  looks  rosy  red,  and  in  such  bril- 
liant colouring  even  dark  objects  are  trans- 
figured. Some  people  are  apt  to  look  at  the 
world  through  rosy  spectacles.     Everything 


Our  Spectacles  89 

to  them  promises  great  things.  Even  dark 
and  dangerous  projects  look  safe  and  easy. 
Such  people  are  delightful  to  meet,  and  have 
anything  but  a  depressing  effect  upon  one ; 
but  after  all  there  is  a  danger  in  looking  at 
things  in  so  brilliant  a  light.  A  person  look- 
ing through  rosy  spectacles  takes  risks  over 
which  another  person  would  hesitate,  and 
often  loses  money  and  time  in  speculations 
which  a  more  reasonable  person  would  see 
the  folly  of.  One  wearing  rosy  spectacles 
often  chooses  paths  in  life  which  lead  into 
temptation  and  end  in  sorrow.  Here  are 
some  other  glasses.  How  do  things  appear 
now  ?  Yes,  perfectly  natural.  One  might 
as  well  take  them  away  and  use  only  their 
own  eyes,  you  say  ?  Well,  what  could  be 
better  than  the  natural  eye  ?  Solomon  said, 
"  The  hearing  ear,  the  seeing  eye,  the  Lord 
hath  made  even  both  of  them  "  (Prov.  xx.  12), 
and  who  knows  better  than  God  how  we 
should  look  at  things?  Surely  it  would  be 
bad  for  us  to  be  constantly  wearing  the  blue 
spectacles,  and  the  rosy  ones  might  be  even 
worse.  So  let  us  try  to  look  at  everything 
in  the  natural  way  that  God  intended  us  to, 
taking  the  dark  with  the  bright,  and  not  in- 
clining too  much  to  either  one.  Now  here 
b  another  kind  of  glass.     How  do  you  like 


go         Experimental  Object  Lessons 

it  ?  Foggy  ?  You  can  scarcely  see  ?  Well, 
that  is  frosted  glass.  Were  you  ever  out  on 
a  foggy  morning  when  you  could  hardly  see 
your  hand  before  your  face?  Perhaps  you 
have  walked  within  a  few  steps  of  a  large 
building  and  yet  been  unable  to  see  it.  In 
Second  Kings,  eighth  chapter  there  is  an  in- 
teresting story.  Elisha,  the  prophet,  and  his 
servant  awoke  one  morning  to  find  a  host 
of  enemies  surrounding  them.  The  servant 
was  much  alarmed  and  asked  his  master 
what  they  should  do.  For  answer  Elisha 
prayed  God  to  open  the  servant's  eyes,  and 
instantly  the  man  was  amazed  to  discover 
all  about  them  a  glittering  company  of  fiery 
horses  and  chariots.  So  we  are  all  the  time 
looking  through  foggy  spectacles.  Prob- 
ably if  we  could  see  clearly  we  should  know 
ourselves  to  be  surrounded  by  angels  of  love 
and  beauty.  Certainly  we  know  that  God 
Himself  is  ever  close  beside  us. 

Here  are  some  smoked  glasses.  You  have 
probably  all  looked  at  eclipses  through 
smoked  glasses.  Turn  to  the  window  now 
and  look  straight  at  the  sun.  Does  it  dazzle 
your  eyes?  No,  with  the  aid  of  smoked 
glasses  we  can  gaze  straight  into  the  bright- 
ness of  the  splendid  sun,  but  with  the  un- 
aided eye  w^e  cannot  look  at  it  for  a  second. 


Our  Spectacles  91 

We  often  long-  to  see  God.  Perhaps  some 
of  you  have  wondered  why  we  cannot  do  so. 
But  if  our  eyes  cannot  stand  even  the  bright- 
ness of  the  sun,  which  God  made,  how  could 
we  expect  to  live  through  the  sight  of  the 
wonderful  Creator  of  the  universe?  Until 
the  grand  time  comes  when  we  shall  be 
changed  so  that  we  can  look  upon  God's 
glory  and  bear  it,  we  must  be  content  to  see 
Him  with  our  spiritual  eyes.  There  are  two 
kinds  of  glasses  which  will  help  the  eyes  of 
our  mind  and  heart.  One  kind  may  be  rep- 
resented by  this  glass,  which  you  may  pass 
from  one  to  another.  Look  at  the  print  of 
your  Bibles  through  it.  Does  it  not  enlarge 
the  letters  wonderfully  ?  It  is  a  magnifying 
glass,  and  through  it  one  can  see  much 
more  plainly  than  with  the  naked  eye.  So 
when  we  long  to  see  God  if  we  will  bring  a 
prayerful  study  of  the  Scriptures  to  our  aid 
we  may  catch  a  glimpse  of  our  heavenly 
Father  through  His  word.  The  other  glass 
through  which  our  spiritual  eyes  must  look 
if  we  would  see  God  cannot  be  brought  into 
this  room  for  you  to  see.  It  is  the  great 
telescope  through  which  people  look  at  the 
moon,  stars  and  planets.  By  its  aid  the 
heavenly  bodies  are  seemingly  brought  close 
before  our  eyes  so  that  we  can  examine  them 


92         Experimental  Object  Lessons 

at  will.  Just  so  the  great  glass  of  Faith  brings 
God  in  all  His  beauty  and  grandeur  before 
us.  All  things  are  possible  to  him  who  has 
faith,  and  without  faith  it  is  impossible  to 
please  God.  It  is  indeed  a  happy  thought 
for  us  that  God  stands  ready  to  reveal  Him- 
self to  all  who  will  look  to  Him  through  the 
glasses  of  study,  prayer  and  faith. 


XXVIII 

TRUTH  AND  FALSEHOOD 

"  The  truth  of  the  Lord  endureth  forever," — Ps.  cxvii.  2. 

Materials  :  Several  small  squares  of  paraffine.  Several  balls 
of  sugar.  Loaf  sugar  can  be  carefully  filed  into  round  balls. 
Tvi^o  small  dishes,  some  water  and  a  little  sulphuric  acid,  chem- 
ically pure. 

Oliver  Wendell  Holmes,  in  his  "  Au- 
tocrat of  the  Breakfast  Table,"  gives  us  a 
good  illustration  of  truth  and  falsehood.  He 
says  that  while  we  are  yet  small  children  an 
angel  comes  to  us  holding  in  his  right  hand 
cubes  and  in  his  left  hand  spheres,  or  balls ; 
something  like  these  perhaps.  (Place  the  par- 
affine and  sugar  before  the  children.)  The 
writer  goes  on  to  say,  **  The  child  to  whom 
they  are  offered  very  probably  clutches  at 
both.  The  spheres  are  the  most  convenient 
things  in  the  world ;  they  roll  with  the  least 
possible  impulse  just  where  the  child  would 
have  them.  The  cubes  will  not  roll  at  all ; 
they  have  a  great  talent  for  standing  still, 
and  always  keep  right  side  up.  But  very 
soon  the  young  philosopher  finds  that  things 
which  roll  so  easily  are  apt  to  roll  into 
93 


94         Experimental  Object  Lessons 

the  wrong  places,  and  to  get  out  of  his  way 
when  he  most  wants  them,  while  he  always 
knows  where  to  find  the  others,  which  stay 
where  they  are  left."  Jesus  says  that  He 
Himself  is  the  truth  (John  xiv.  6)  and  that  the 
devil  is  the  father  of  all  lies  (John  viii.  44). 
We  want  to  be  sure  that  the  material  out  of 
which  we  build  our  lives  is  such  that  it  will 
stand  all  tests.  Let  us  test  these  objects 
which  represent  truth  and  falsehood  for  us 
to-day.  (Drop  a  square  and  a  ball  into 
water.)  At  first  they  both  seem  to  stand 
this  test  equally  well,  do  they  not  ?  But  see, 
gradually  the  ball  is  falling  away.  Finally 
it  has  dissolved  completely  while  the  square 
representing  truth  is  still  solid  and  whole. 
We  will  try  a  more  severe  test  now  by  plac- 
ing a  square  and  a  ball  in  a  dish  and  drop- 
ping some  of  this  acid  upon  them.  Oh,  now 
the  difference  between  the  two  is  plainly 
seen  !  Our  representative  of  falsehood  casts 
off  its  white  garments  of  deceit  and  is  re- 
vealed in  all  its  blackness  while  the  repre- 
sentative of  truth  still  keeps  its  form  and 
beauty.  The  twenty-first  chapter  of  Revela- 
tion gives  us  a  description  of  heaven,  and 
in  the  twenty-seventh  verse  we  are  told  that 
nothing  which  defileth  or  maketh  a  lie  shall 
enter    that    glorious    home.     The    fifteenth 


Truth  and  Falsehood  95 

Psalm  asks  the  question,  "  Lord,  who  shall 
abide  in  Thy  holy  hill  ? "  And  the  answer 
is  given,  **  He  that  walketh  uprightly  and 
worketh  righteousness  and  speaketh  the 
truth  in  his  heart." 


XXIX 

PROTECTION 

"  What  time  I  am  afraid  I  will  trust  in  Thee." — P$.  Ivi.j. 
Materials  :     A  few  pennies'  worth  of  lycopodium.     A  glass 
of  water.     Several  small  coins.     A  few  pens,  wires  or  hairpins. 

Christians  often  have  to  stand  in  dan- 
gerous places.  In  calling  people  to  become 
His  followers  Christ  does  not  hold  out 
promises  of  earthly  prosperity  or  of  ease. 
On  the  contrary  He  says  plainly  that  those 
wishing  to  follow  Him  must  take  up  their 
crosses  and  prepare  to  struggle  against 
dangers,  temptations  and  trials  of  many 
kinds.  He  does,  however,  promise  that  they 
shall  be  so  tenderly  guarded  during  these 
trials  that  no  harm  shall  befall  them 
(Ps.  xxxiv.  7)  as,  for  instance,  were  Daniel 
and  his  companions  in  the  fiery  furnace.  I 
have  here  a  glass  of  water.  If  I  hold  these 
dimes  and  pennies  over  the  glass  and  let 
them  fall  they  immediately  drop  to  the 
bottom,  and  I  take  them  out  wet.  Chris- 
tians are  not  the  only  people  who  have  to 
suffer,  but  they  are  the  only  ones  who  can 
pass  dry  shod  through  the  waters  of  affliction 
96 


Protection  97 

(Ps.  cxxiv.  1-7).  I  will  sprinkle  some  of  this 
yellow  powder  upon  the  water  and  now  you 
may  drop  the  coins  into  the  glass  again. 
They  sink  as  before  ?  Certainly  they  do.  A 
Christian  enduring  a  trial  goes  to  the  very 
depths  of  suffering,  just  as  one  who  is  not  a 
Christian  does.  But  you  will  see  that  after 
all  there  is  a  difference.  Put  your  finger 
into  the  glass  of  water.  Now  draw  it  out 
again  and  shake  off  the  powder.  Is  your 
finger  wet?  No,  it  is  as  perfectly  dry  as 
though  it  had  not  been  in  water.  Put  it  in 
again  and  draw  out  your  coins.  Are  they 
wet  ?  No,  nor  has  a  particle  of  water 
moistened  them.  They  were  so  enveloped 
in  the  fine  lycopodium  powder  as  they  fell, 
that  the  water  could  not  touch  them  al- 
though they  were  in  the  bottom  of  the 
tumbler.  So  it  is  with  those  who  love  and 
trust  God.  While  they  live  in  this  world 
they  must  take  their  share  of  its  sorrows  and 
temptations,  but  they  may  be  at  all  times  so 
closely  enfolded  by  the  protection  of  God  that 
nothing  evil  can  harm  them  (Ps.  xxxiv.  19). 
For  instance  a  converted  drunkard  can  enter 
a  saloon  in  the  endeavour  to  save  his  old 
companions,  and  be  so  protected  by  God 
that  the  smell  and  sight  of  liquor  will  have 
no  power  over  him.     So,  also,  a  Christian 


98         Experimental  Object  Lessons 

can  go  through  heart  sorrows  which  would 
harden  and  ruin  the  disposition  of  one  who 
did  not  know  Christ,  and  can  come  out  of 
them  as  sweet  as  he  went  in.  Now  drop 
some  of  these  pens  and  a  wire  or  hairpin 
upon  the  water.  Why  do  they  not  sink? 
They  are  borne  up  by  this  fine  powder. 
Sprinkle  some  drops  of  water  in  the  glass. 
They  do  not  reach  the  water  below  but  form 
in  little  yellow  balls  and  roll  around  on  top. 
Christians,  it  is  true,  have  to  pass  under  the 
waters  of  affliction  at  times,  but  they  may  be 
saved  from  many  small  trials  which  others 
sink  under.  They  float  safely  over  the 
waters  of  life  upborne  by  the  protection  of 
God.  What  fear  have  they  of  death  ? 
(i  Cor.  XV.  55).  What  need  have  they  for 
worry  ?  (Phil.  iv.  6).  They  may  cast  their 
cares  upon  the  Lord  and  ride  triumphantly 
over  all  the  smaller  ills  and  worries  that  per- 
plex and  annoy  those  who  have  no  God  to 
rest  upon. 


XXX 

BAPTISM 

«  And  now  why  tarryest  thou  ?  Arise,  and  be  baptized,  and 
wash  away  thy  sins,  calling  on  the  name  of  the  Lord." — Acts 
xxii.  lb. 

Materials :  A  thin  tumbler  and  a  spoon.  A  small  quantity 
of  pounded  ice.     One-third  as  much  salt  as  ice. 

Before  Jesus  began  to  preach,  while  He 
was  still  living  quietly  in  Nazareth,  a  man 
called  John  the  Baptist  was  living  in  the  wil- 
derness of  Judea.  I  should  like  to  have  you 
tell  me  all  you  know  about  John  the  Baptist. 
Yes,  he  dressed  in  camel's  hair  and  wore  a 
leather  girdle  and  ate  locusts  and  wild 
honey.  Did  he  always  stay  in  the  wilder- 
ness ?  No,  God  commanded  him  to  go  and 
preach  to  the  people,  telling  them  to  make 
ready  for  the  Saviour  by  repenting  of  their 
sins.  So  he  went  into  the  lonely  country  by 
the  river  Jordan,  and  a  great  multitude  came 
there  to  hear  him,  and  he  baptized  all  who 
repented  of  their  sins.  Then  Jesus  came 
from  His  home  in  Nazareth  for  John  to  bap- 
tize Him  also.  During  the  three  years  which 
followed,  Jesus  baptized  many  people,  and 
99 


lOO       Experimental  Object  Lessons 

just  before  He  ascended  into  heaven  He  in- 
structed His  apostles  to  go  into  all  the  world 
preaching  and  baptizing  people  (Matt,  xxviii. 
19).  They  did  so  ;  and  down  through  the 
ages  baptism  has  been  used  by  all  preachers 
of  Christ.  Probably  you  have  all  sat  in 
church  and  witnessed  a  baptismal  service. 
Perhaps  some  of  you  have  stood  on  a  river 
bank  and  watched  people  go  down  into  the 
water  to  be  baptized  in  the  same  manner  that 
Jesus  was.  Should  you  wish  to  join  the 
church,  the  minister  would  ask  whether  or 
not  you  had  ever  been  baptized.  If  you  an- 
swered **  no,"  he  would  say  that  you  must  be 
baptized  in  order  to  join  the  church. 

Since  this  ceremony  is  so  important,  one 
ought  to  understand  it  fully.  It  has  been 
defined  as  "  an  outward  sign  of  an  inward 
grace,"  and  the  definition  is  a  good  one. 
Being  sprinkled  or  immersed  does  not  change 
one's  heart,  but  it  represents  to  one's  self  and 
to  the  people  around,  the  change  which  took 
place  in  the  heart  when  the  Holy  Spirit 
cleansed  it.  I  will  put  into  this  tumbler  some 
ice  and  salt  and  stir  it  well.  Now  you  see 
rapidly  appearing  on  the  outside  of  the  glass 
a  heavy  coating  of  frost.  It  is  so  thick  that 
you  can  scrape  it  off  in  flakes,  and  you  can 
see  graceful  and  pretty  patterns  traced  upon 


Baptism  lol 

it,  as  upon  a  window  pane  on  a  frosty  morn- 
ing. The  frost  is  an  outward  sign  of  the 
condition  of  coldness  inside  the  glass,  just  as 
the  water  applied  in  baptism  is  an  outward 
sign  of  the  cleansed  condition  of  the  heart. 
Jesus  never  committed  sin  and  so  had  no 
personal  need  of  baptism,  but  He  had  come 
on  earth  to  obey  all  of  God's  commandments 
for  us,  and  in  our  place,  so  that  if  we  believe 
in  Him  we  may  be  rewarded  for  His  obe- 
dience. I  hope  all  in  this  class  will  come  to 
feel  the  cleansing  power  of  the  Holy  Ghost 
in  their  hearts,  and  will  manifest  it  to  the 
world  by  being  baptized  and  joining  the 
church  of  Christ. 


XXXI 

RAYS  OF  LOVE 

"  For  the  Lord  God  is  a  sun  and  shield." — Ps.  Ixxxiv.  ii. 

Material :     A  prism. 

In  searching  our  minds  for  suitable  terms 
in  which  to  clothe  our  ideas  of  the  Almighty, 
we  naturally  select  the  highest  symbols  with 
which  we  are  familiar.  The  Psalmist  likens 
God  to  a  sun.  Our  sun  is  indeed  the  best 
friend  we  have  in  the  material  universe. 
Without  his  light  and  heat  we  should  not 
only  lose  our  own  lives,  but  our  earth  would 
become  dark,  barren  and  frozen.  We  have 
a  prism  here  to-day.  It  is  a  little  transpar- 
ent, three-sided  object  which  has  the  power 
of  resolving  a  ray  of  light  into  its  seven  pri- 
mary colours.  We  will  place  it  on  the  table 
here  where  the  sunlight  can  strike  it.  Now 
you  see  that  the  ray  of  white  light  that  enters 
the  glass  at  one  side  comes  out  in  a  band  of 
bright  colours  on  the  other  side.  Red,  orange, 
yellow,  green,  blue,  indigo  and  violet.  You 
have  all  seen  the  same  colours  in  the  form  of 
a  rainbow  after  a  storm.  The  drops  of  fall- 
ing water  bend  and  turn  the  rays  of  sunlight 


Rays  of  Love  103 

so  that  they  are  reflected  into  our  eyes  in 
these  same  beautiful  colours.  Each  ray  that 
comes  from  the  sun  contains  all  of  these  col- 
ours but  we  do  not  usually  discern  them  be- 
cause all  of  the  colours  mixed  together  give 
a  white  effect,  and  it  is  only  when  we  see 
rays  broken  up  by  passing  through  a  me- 
dium denser  than  air  that  we  are  able  to  dis- 
tinguish the  colours  of  which  they  are  com- 
posed. 

As  the  rays  of  the  sun  are  passed  through 
this  prism  with  such  beautiful  effect,  let  us 
pass  a  ray  of  God's  love  through  the  prism  of 
our  mind  and  see  it  resolve  itself  into  differ- 
ent parts.  We  are  so  accustomed  to  the 
every-day  light  of  the  sun  that  we  take  it  as 
a  matter  of  course,  and  the  rays  of  God's  love 
are  also  seen  so  constantly  that  we  hardly 
realize  their  beauty.  Sometimes  when  a  very 
hardened  sinner  sees  the  light  in  such  a 
manner  that  he  is  converted  we  look  up  and 
take  interest  just  as  we  do  when  we  see  a 
rainbow,  but,  as  a  rule,  we  give  the  wonder- 
ful love  far  too  little  thought. 

This  lovely  band  of  colour  is  called  the 
spectrum  of  the  sunbeam.  Now  tell  me  the 
first  colour  you  see  in  the  spectrum.  Red. 
Well,  the  first  thing  a  sinner  sees  in  a  ray  of 
God's   love    is    pardon.     Our    pardon    was 


104       Experimental  Object  Lessons 

bought  by  the  red  blood  of  Christ.  No  one 
is  good  enough  to  be  saved  by  his  own 
merits,  but  the  Son  of  God  shed  His  blood 
for  us  that  we  might  be  saved  from  our  sins. 
So  write  pardon  for  the  first  colour  in  our 
spectrum.  What  is  the  next  colour  ?  Orange. 
A  brighter,  lighter  colour  than  red  and  may 
well  signify  cleansing.  How  glad  we  ought 
to  be  that  God  does  not  turn  with  loathing 
from  us  when  we  are  sinful  but  enfolds  us  in 
His  arms  of  love  and  pardon  even  before  He 
cleanses  us.  After  pardon  always  comes 
cleansing.  What  colour  comes  next? 
Yellow.  This  is  the  colour  which  reflects  the 
most  light  of  any.  It  may  well  represent  the 
beautiful  peace  which  fills  the  pardoned  and 
cleansed  heart.  The  next  colour  ?  Green. 
Green  is  the  colour  of  growing  things.  Trees, 
grass  and  plants  which  push  themselves  up- 
ward, pulsing  with  life  and  power.  Yes, 
power  is  what  this  colour  should  represent 
in  our  spectrum.  The  power  to  grow  and  to 
accomplish  things.  What  colour  comes  next  ? 
Blue.  The  colour  of  the  beautiful  sky  above 
us.  The  colour  usually  reflected  from  a  calm, 
pure  lake.  Purity  should  be  written  next. 
And  now  what  colour?  Indigo.  A  dark, 
deep  blue  representing  the  deep  abiding  joy 
that  fills  a  Christian's  heart  when  living  in 


Rays  of  Love  105 

God's  sunlight  of  love.  Now  what  is  the  last 
colour  ?  Violet.  Violet  is  the  colour  which 
has  the  least  travelling  power  of  any,  just  as 
yellow  has  the  most.  That  is  why  so  much 
of  it  stays  high  above  us,  mingling  with  the 
blue  and  giving  us  such  beautiful  depths  to 
gaze  up  through.  So  the  violet  colour  draws 
our  thoughts  above  and  reminds  us  of  eternal 
life.  We  do  not  have  to  wait  until  we  are 
physically  dead  to  enjoy  eternal  life.  Jesus 
said,  '*  Verily,  verily  I  say  unto  you,  he  that 
heareth  My  word,  and  belie veth  on  Him  that 
sent  Me  hath  everlasting  life,  and  shall  not 
come  into  condemnation  ;  but  is  passed  from 
death  unto  life  "  (John  v.  24).  We  begin  to 
live  the  everlasting  life  as  soon  as  we  come 
into  the  sunlight  of  God's  love,  and  the  mov- 
ing from  this  present  body  into  the  new  one 
which  God  is  preparing  for  us  will  only  be  a 
beautiful  incident  in  our  life  which  will  go  on 
through  all  eternity.  The  only  way  to  die  is 
to  get  out  of  the  range  of  God's  rays  of  love. 
Now  what  have  we  in  our  spectrum  ? 
Pardon,  cleansing,  peace,  power,  purity,  joy 
and  eternal  life.  Sometimes  the  sun  is  hidden 
from  us  by  clouds,  but  God  never  hides  His 
love  from  us,  and  unless  we  ourselves  put 
something  between  Him  and  us  we  can 
always   dwell   in   the  sunlight  of  His  love, 


io6       Experimental  Object  Lessons 

every  ray  of  which  is  composed  of  such 
wonderfully  beautiful  things.  Pardon  and 
cleansing  no  matter  how  often  we  need 
them.  Peace  in  our  hearts,  and  power  to 
grow  and  to  help  others.  Purity  and  joy 
and,  best  of  all,  eternal  life  to  spend  with  God 
and  our  loved  ones. 


XXXII 

THE  CHANGELESS  ONE 

"  For  I  am  the  Lord,  I  change  not." — Mai.  in.  6. 
Materials  :     Some  mercury.     A  few  fragments  of  iodine.     A 
sheet  of  paper  and  a  knife. 

In  your  photograph  albums  at  home  are 
there  any  pictures  of  yourselves  when  you 
were  babies  ?  Yes  ?  Well,  do  you  look  like 
those  pictures  now?  Oh,  that  makes  you 
laugh,  does  it  ?  Well,  then  you  have  changed, 
have  you  not  ?  Every  person  and  everything 
on  earth  changes.  Even  the  great  moun- 
tains which  look  so  strong  and  solid  are 
constantly,  though  slowly,  being  altered  in 
shape  by  the  wear  of  the  elements  upon  them. 
Rivers  change  their  courses  as  the  ceaseless 
friction  of  their^  waters  against  the  banks 
wears  away  the  earth.  The  waves  of  the 
great  oceans  are  constantly  changing  the 
outlines  of  the  coast.  The  sky  above  us  is 
always  changing.  Beautiful  clouds  form  and 
reform,  sink,  disappear  and  are  replaced  by 
others.  Even  in  the  universe  of  the  stars 
and  planets  change  is  constantly  taking  place. 
All  vegetation  on  the  earth  changes  and  de- 
107 


lo8       Experimental  Object  Lessons 

cays.  Metals  and  precious  stones,  even  gold, 
"the  royal  metal,"  and  diamonds,  the  hardest 
of  all  substances,  can  suffer  change  and  even 
destruction.  To  illustrate  how  completely 
some  things  can  change,  we  will  put  some 
mercury  on  a  piece  of  paper,  and  beside  it 
place  these  fragments  of  iodine  ;  a  liquid  and 
a  solid.  With  a  knife  we  will  rub  them  to- 
gether, crushing  the  iodine  into  the  mercury, 
and  see,  before  our  eyes  they  have  changed 
and  become  a  powder.  They  are  so  utterly 
unlike  what  they  were  a  few  minutes  ago 
that  we  are  amazed  at  the  change.  (If  the 
proportion  of  iodine  is  large  the  powder  will 
be  red,  if  but  little  is  used  it  will  be  a  dull 
green.)  Some  changes  are  for  better  and 
some  for  worse.  Changes  caused  by  phys- 
ical growth  are  natural  and  right.  A  mother 
holds  in  her  arms  a  baby.  Almost  before 
she  knows  it  her  baby  is  lost  and  she  has 
instead  a  little  boy  or  girl,  walking,  talking 
and  laughing.  Soon  this  little  child  also  is 
gone  and  in  its  place  is  a  sturdy  schoolboy 
or  girl.  This  child  also  vanishes,  giving  place 
to  a  young  man  or  woman,  and  so  on  through 
the  years  until  the  final  change  takes  place. 
The  changes  we  have  discussed  so  far  have 
all  been  physical,  but  in  the  mental  and  spirit- 
ual world   change  is  just  as  surely  taking 


The  Changeless  One  109 

place  constantly.  No  one  goes  to  rest  at 
night,  after  a  day's  living,  exactly  as  he  was 
in  mind  and  heart  when  he  arose  in  the 
morning.  Changes  usually  come  so  gradu- 
ally and  silently  that  they  attract  little  notice  ; 
nevertheless  they  are  constantly  occurring 
around  us  in  every  person  and  every  thing. 
Amid  all  these  earthly  changes  it  is  restful  to 
let  our  minds  turn  to  the  Unchanging  One. 
Do  you  know  who  that  is  ?  Yes,  God.  It  is 
possible  for  our  earthly  fathers  and  mothers 
to  change  in  many  ways,  but  our  heavenly 
Father  never  changes  (Ps.  xxvii.  10).  Some- 
times brothers,  sisters  and  friends  change, 
but  our  elder  brother  (Mark  iii.  35)  and  the 
friend  who  is  closer  to  us  than  all  other 
friends  is  always  the  same  (Prov.  xviii.  24). 
Our  good  old  earth  may  change,  but  God  is 
preparing  for  us  a  home  which  will  never 
change,  **  eternal  in  the  heavens"  (Rev.  xxi.  i). 
So  in  all  the  changes  which  we  know  must 
come  to  us,  let  us  keep  close  to  our  unchang- 
ing friend,  trusting  Him  to  keep  us  safe  and 
to  make  all  things  work  together  for  our 
good  (Rom.  viii.  28). 


XXXIII 

THE  IMAGE  OF  GOD 

"  So  God  created  man  in  His  own  image,  in  the  image  of 
God  created  He  him;  male  and  female  created  He  them." — 
Gen.  i,  2y. 

Materials  :  Several  new  silver  dollars  on  which  the  engrav- 
ing is  clear  and  distinct.  Some  wax  candles  of  different  col- 
ours.    A  pen-knife.     Some  earth.     A  little  water  in  a  dish. 

After  God  had  made  this  beautiful  world, 
with  all  its  vegetable  and  animal  life,  He 
created  the  people  who  were  to  enjoy  and 
profit  by  it.  And  in  His  wonderful  good- 
ness, He  made  them  like  Himself,  giving 
them  minds  capable  of  thinking  and  invent- 
ing, and  wills  to  choose  between  right  and 
wrong.  An  image  of  anything  is  a  likeness 
of  it.  I  will  put  a  dollar  on  the  table  here 
(put  a  paper  beneath  it  to  protect  the  table) 
and  one  of  you  may  light  a  match  and  hold 
the  end  of  one  of  these  candles  in  the  flame 
so  that  the  wax  will  melt  and  flow  over  the 
dollar.  Now  leave  it  a  moment  to  dry,  and 
then,  with  this  pen-knife  gently  loosen  the 
wax  around  the  edge  and  lift  it  off.  What 
have  you  now?  Yes,  an  exact  likeness  of 
the  dollar.  You  can  see  the  eagle  and  read 
no 


The  Image  of  God  ill 

the  lettering  around  the  edge.  That  is  an 
image  of  the  dollar.  Is  it  as  strong  as  the 
coin  itself  ?  No,  it  is  frail  and  would  break 
easily.  Is  the  engraving  upon  it  as  clear 
and  distinct  as  that  upon  the  dollar?  No, 
it  is  faint,  and  in  some  places  hard  to  see. 
We  are  but  frail  and  indistinct  images  of 
God.  In  some  people  it  is  hard  to  see  the 
likeness  at  all,  so  degraded  are  they  and  un- 
like Him.  Some  poor  little  children  are  never 
taught  about  the  Great  Father  in  whose  like- 
ness they  were  created,  and  they  grow  up  in 
ignorance  and  sin  until,  when  they  are  men 
and  women,  the  image  of  the  Creator  is  lost 
sight  of,  like  this.  (Gently  sift  and  rub  earth 
over  the  wax  impression  of  the  dollar  until  it 
is  very  soiled.)  Is  this  ruined  now?  It  cer- 
tainly looks  so.  If  a  strange  child  should 
enter  the  class  at  this  moment  and  look  at  it 
he  would  not  know  that  there  had  ever  been 
any  likeness  to  a  dollar  about  it.  But  you 
who  made  it  know.  So,  although  our  eyes 
fail  to  see  any  likeness  to  God  in  some  peo- 
ple, their  Creator  knows  what  is  underneath 
the  sin.  Let  us  try  to  get  this  clean  again. 
(Wash  it  carefully  in  water.)  Now  it  shows 
again  the  image  of  the  dollar.  So  any  sin- 
ner, no  matter  how  vile,  can  be  washed  clean 
in  the  blood  of  Christ,  and  regain  the  dignity 


112       Experimental  Object  Lessons 

suitable  to  one  created  in  the  image  of  God. 
Here  are  several  dollars  and  a  number  of 
different  coloured  candles.  Some  of  you  may- 
take  them  and  make  impressions.  Now  we 
have  images  of  the  dollar  in  different  colours. 
Why  do  you  suppose  I  asked  you  to  do  that  ? 
I  think  you  can  tell  me.  Are  the  people  in 
all  parts  of  the  world  alike  ?  Now  you  have 
the  idea.  As  we  have  here  many  different 
coloured  impressions  of  the  dollar,  so  in  the 
world  there  are  many  different  races  of  people 
— with  different  coloured  skins,  different  man- 
ners and  customs,  different  ideas  of  right  and 
wrong,  but  all  made  in  the  image  of  God  as 
much  as  we  white  people  are.  Does  God 
love  these  heathen  people  as  much  as  He 
loves  us  ?  Oh,  yes,  indeed  He  does.  Every 
person  whom  He  has  created  in  His  own 
image  He  loves  and  wants  to  save  and  up- 
lift. Since  Adam  and  Eve  exercised  their 
power  to  choose  between  right  and  wrong  in 
the  Garden  of  Eden  by  choosing  wrong, 
there  has  been  only  one  person  who  has  ever 
walked  through  this  life  without  defiling  in 
the  slightest  degree  the  image  of  God.  Can 
you  tell  me  who  that  person  was  ?  Yes,  Jesus 
our  Saviour.  He  always  remained  the  exact 
and  perfect  image  of  God  (Col.  i.  15  and 
Heb.  i.  3).     The  last  command  of  Jesus  was 


The  Image  of  God  113 

that  the  gospel  of  salvation  should  be  carried 
to  every  soul  on  earth,  regardless  of  the 
colour  of  their  skins  or  the  depths  of  their 
wickedness.  So  let  us  try  not  only  to  keep 
the  image  of  God  undefiled  in  our  own  selves, 
but  help  to  send  the  good  news  to  all  who 
have  not  heard  it,  so  that  they  may  learn 
how  they  were  created,  and  why,  and  share 
the  joy  which  we  possess. 


XXXIV 

"SERMONS  IN  STONES" 

"  And  they  shall  be  Mine,  saith  the  Lord  of  hosts,  in  that 
day  when  I  make  up  My  jewels." — Mai.  Hi.  jy. 

Materials :  Several  small,  smooth  pebbles,  a  carnelian,  a 
ruby,  a  pearl  and  a  diamond.  Jewels  which  are  set  in  rings  or 
brooches  may  be  used. 

It  is  natural  for  a  boy  to  like  stones.  As 
he  walks  along  a  country  road,  or  when  he 
finds  a  gravel  walk  in  the  city,  his  eyes  are 
usually  bent  upon  the  ground  and  his  bare 
toes  are  busy  turning  over  the  pebbles  seek- 
ing for  curious  or  pretty  stones.  Girls,  too, 
like  stones,  but  they  generally  prefer  the 
valuable  kind  which  they  like  set  in  rings  or 
brooches.  Shakespeare  says  there  are  ''  ser- 
mons in  stones  and  good  in  everything" 
(''As  You  Like  It,"  Act  II,  Scene  i).  How 
odd  to  think  that  a  stone  can  hold  a  ser- 
mon !  Let  us  see  if  the  ones  we  have  here 
can  preach  to  us.  Many,  many  years  ago 
boy  nature  was  the  same  as  it  is  to-day,  and 
it  is  easy  to  imagine  the  boy  David  stooping 
over  the  brook  choosing  his  five  smooth 
stones,  which  probably  looked  very  much 
like  these  we  have  here.  Do  you  suppose 
114 


"Sermons  in  Stones"  115 

he  wondered  in  that  hour  why  the  stones 
were  so  smooth  ?  Probably  not,  because  he 
had  too  much  on  his  mind  at  the  time.  But 
perhaps  some  of  you  can  tell  me  why  these 
stones  are  so  smooth,  with  no  sharp  angles 
or  rough  edges.  Were  they  always  so  ?  No, 
probably  they  were  once  a  part  of  some  great 
stone,  and  became  broken  off  in  some  way, 
falling  into  a  stream  of  water.  There  they 
were  tossed  to  and  fro  among  other  broken 
pieces  of  rock,  rubbing  against  something 
hard  on  every  side,  until  gradually,  as  time 
passed,  they  became  smoother  and  smoother 
until  their  angles  and  rough  edges  were  all 
gone,  and  they  were  perfectly  smooth,  as  we 
see  them  now.  While  David  probably  did 
not  think  of  these  things  at  that  time,  the 
same  process  was  used  with  his  character. 
During  his  life  he  was  thrown  among  many 
enemies,  and  tossed  to  and  fro  with  trouble ; 
often  dashed  with  terrific  force  against  hard 
places,  until  gradually  the  angles  and  rough 
places  in  his  character  were  worn  smooth 
and  it  became  beautiful  and  symmetrical.  It 
is  the  same  way  with  us  to-day,  so  let  us  not 
complain  when  we  are  jostled  and  rubbed 
and  pushed  here  and  there  by  the  force  of 
circumstances  in  this  somewhat  hard  world. 
We  all  have  angles  and  rough  places  in  our 


li6       Experimental  Object  Lessons 

characters  which  would  better  be  smoothed 
away,  although  the  process  is  a  painful  one. 
How  beautiful  this  carnelian  is  I  It  is  always 
delightful  to  find  such  a  pretty  stone,  just  as 
it  is  a  pleasure  to  find  a  rarely  beautiful  char- 
acter among  our  friends.  The  beauty  of  this 
carnelian  is  that  if  we  should  cut  or  break  it 
open  we  should  find  it  exactly  as  beautiful  at 
its  very  centre  as  it  is  on  the  outside.  The  best 
characters  in  the  world  are  the  ones  who  are 
just  as  sweet  and  true  in  their  inmost  hearts 
as  they  are  in  their  outward  characteristics. 

How  lovely  this  ruby  is  I  It  glows  as 
though  it  had  a  fire  at  its  heart.  Rubies  are 
second  only  to  diamonds  in  hardness  and 
have  always  been  valued  very  highly  as  jew- 
els. The  wise  Solomon,  however,  tells  us  in 
Prov.  iii.  15  and  viii.  1 1  that  there  is  one  thing 
still  more  valuable.  That  is  wisdom,  which 
the  great  king  had  himself  in  such  abun- 
dance. Our  Heavenly  Father  says  that  if 
any  of  us  lack  wisdom  we  can  come  to  Him 
and  receive  it  fully  and  freely  (James  i.  5). 
Solomon  also  compares  good  women  to 
rubies  in  such  a  way  that  all  the  girls  who 
will  look  up  Prov.  xxxi.  10  when  they  go  home 
will  be  pleased  and  encouraged  to  be  virtuous. 

Although  the  carnelian  and  the  ruby  are 
beautiful,  this  pure-looking   pearl   suits  my 


"Sermons  in  Stones"  117 

fancy  best  Whether  it  could  properly  be 
called  a  stone  or  not  I  am  unable  to  say  ;  but 
it  is  a  precious  jewel  and  I  hope  it  has  a  ser- 
mon for  us.  Pearls  are  produced  by  a  shell- 
fish of  the  oyster  species  and  require  seven 
years  to  grow.  The  shells  are  secured  by 
diving,  and  contain  from  eight  to  twelve 
pearls  each.  The  largest  are  the  size  of  a 
walnut,  but  they  are  rarely  as  large  as  a 
cherry-stone.  Jesus  likened  the  kingdom  of 
heaven  to  a  pearl  of  great  price  (Matt.  xiii. 
45,  46),  and  in  a  parable  told  us  that  it  is 
worth  while  for  us  to  give  up  everything  we 
have  in  the  world  in  order  to  secure  it.  A 
pearl  is  so  pure  and  lovely  that  a  person 
would  not  feel  like  wearing  one  upon  stained 
or  soiled  hands,  or  on  a  dress  that  was  un- 
tidy or  out  of  harmony  with  it  in  any  way. 
If  the  kingdom  of  heaven  is  ours  it  is  within 
the  heart,  and  to  make  the  heart  a  fit  abode 
for  a  pearl  of  so  great  a  price  we  must  see 
that  no  impure  thoughts  linger  there. 

The  last  stone  left  is  a  diamond.  Dia- 
monds are  the  most  costly  stones  in  the 
world.  When  found  they  are  rough  and 
covered  with  a  layer  of  partially  decomposed 
rock.  One  not  accustomed  to  precious  stones 
would  never  dream  when  seeing  a  diamond 
in  the  rough  what  wonderful  possibilities  lay 


ii8       Experimental  Object  Lessons 

hidden  in  that  common  looking  pebble.  So 
it  often  is  with  people.  Some  of  the  greatest 
men  in  our  country  were,  in  their  youth,  un- 
couth, unpromising  looking  boys.  Abraham 
Lincoln  is  a  good  example  of  this.  The  dia- 
mond is  the  hardest  of  any  known  substance 
and  can  be  cut  and  polished  only  by  its  own 
dust.  So  in  polishing  His  human  diamonds 
God  uses  other  human  beings.  A  brilliant 
mind  is  the  best  sharpener  of  another  fine 
intellect,  and  as  a  mind  is  associated  with 
another  mind  of  equal  or  superior  strength  it 
is  cut  and  polished  into  brilliancy.  Books 
are  so  plenty  and  inexpensive  in  these  days 
that  all  who  will  may  have  the  privilege  of 
coming  in  touch  with  the  master  minds  of 
the  centuries.  However,  it  is  not  the  hard- 
ness and  brilliancy  of  the  diamond  that  ap- 
peal to  us  most.  It  is  the  beautiful  trans- 
parency of  it  and  the  ever  changing  colours 
reflected  in  it.  So  a  truly  great  mind  has  a 
noble  simplicity  and  sincerity  about  it  and 
the  heart  it  accompanies  reflects  the  beauties 
it  catches  from  the  God  it  loves.  Oh,  that 
we  might  feel  and  know  God  in  His  great- 
ness and  beauty  and  have  the  power  to  re- 
flect Him  in  ever  so  slight  a  measure,  so  that 
those  around  us  might  catch  a  gleam  of  His 
light  and  glory  1 


XXXV 

THE  SUN  OF  RIGHTEOUSNESS 

«  But  unto  you  that  fear  My  name  shall  the  Sun  of  righteous- 
ness arise  with  healing  in  His  wings." — Mai.  iv.  2. 

Materials  :  A  healthy  plant  in  a  pot.  A  plant  that  has  been 
growing  in  a  cellar. 

What  a  difference  there  is  in  these  two 
plants !  One  so  healthy  and  green  and  the 
other  so  pale  and  sickly  looking  I  Who  can 
tell  me  what  has  made  the  difference  ?  Oh, 
yes,  some  of  you  have  been  in  your  cellars  in 
the  spring  time,  and  have  seen  potatoes  and 
onions  which  have  so  wanted  to  grow  that 
they  have  sent  forth  long  white  sprouts  which 
look  like  these  poor  pale  branches.  Yes, 
this  plant  has  been  growing  in  a  cellar  until 
it  has  nearly  lost  its  life.  What  is  it  that 
gives  Ufe  and  colour  to  a  plant?  Yes,  the 
sun^  that  great  beautiful  orb  which  sends  its 
waves  of  light  and  heat  to  the  earth.  No 
plant  can  grow  in  health  or  beauty  unless 
the  sun's  heat  waves  beat  against  it,  and 
enter  the  earth  at  its  roots  warming  and 
invigorating  them ;  unless  the  swift  light 
waves  bathe  it  in  their  radiance  and  give  it 
119 


120       Experimental  Object  Lessons 

colours  to  reflect  into  our  eyes.  Even  in  the 
cellar  where  this  poor  plant  has  been  stand- 
ing for  some  weeks  the  benefits  of  the  sun 
were  felt  in  a  slight  degree  or  else  the  plant 
would  now  be  entirely  dead,  for  all  plants 
owe  their  lives  to  the  sun.  But  the  thick 
obstructions  which  were  between  the  plant 
and  the  life-giving  light  and  heat  waves 
weakened  their  powers  to  such  an  extent 
that  the  plant  was  slowly  dying  for  want  of 
them.  This  healthy  blooming  plant  is  a 
pleasant  contrast,  and  shows  what  the  power 
of  the  sun  can  do.  Christians  are  like  plants 
in  needing  the  sun  but  it  is  the  glorious  Sun 
of  righteousness  that  they  need.  Do  you 
know  who  is  called  the  Sun  of  righteousness  ? 
Yes,  Jesus  our  Saviour.  As  the  plant  grows 
and  thrives  and  reflects  beautiful  colours  from 
the  sun's  rays,  so  Christians  grow  in  grace 
and  become  happy  and  useful  as  they  feel 
the  warmth  and  light  of  Jesus'  love.  And 
as  the  plant  becomes  sickly  and  pale  and 
finally  dies  when  shut  away  from  the  sun,  so 
Christians  lose  their  happiness  and  power  to 
be  useful  and  gradually  approach  spiritual 
death  if  they  get  far  away  from  Christ;  if 
they  put  themselves  into  such  an  attitude  of 
mind  that  they  cannot  pray ;  if  they  fail  to 
study  the  word  of  God  and  to  listen  to  His 


The  Sun  of  Righteousness         12 1 

voice  as  it  speaks  through  their  consciences. 
When  I  take  this  plant  home  I  intend  to  put 
it  in  the  bright  sunshine  again,  and  hope  to 
see  it  gradually  regain  its  life  and  strength. 
So  when  a  Christian  awakens  to  the  fact  that 
he  is  losing  his  spiritual  strength  ;  when  he 
feels  cold  and  lifeless,  he  should  hasten  to 
put  himself  once  again  where  the  rays  of 
God's  love  can  fall  full  upon  him,  and  then 
his  happiness  and  spiritual  health  will  surely 
return  to  him. 


XXXVI 

LITTLE   THINGS 

"  For  who  hath  despised  the  day  of  small  things  ?  " — Zech. 
iv.  lo. 

Materials  :  A  screw,  a  grain  of  sand,  a  drop  of  water,  two 
glasses  of  water,  a  few  drops  of  ink,  a  few  drops  of  sulphate  of 
copper  solution,  a  dish  of  water,  a  small  pebble. 

So  much  of  the  happiness  and  unhappi- 
ness  of  our  lives  depends  upon  little  things 
that  we  are  naturally  led  to  ask  ourselves 
whether  they  are  really  little  or  not.  A  thing 
is  little  or  big  according  to  what  we  compare 
it  with.  Certain  faults  are  little  in  the  sense 
of  being  easily  acquired  and  easily  corrected, 
but  their  results  are  often  serious.  Here  is  a 
small  screw.  It  looks  unimportant,  but 
should  such  a  screw  slip  out  of  its  place  in 
an  engine  or  some  such  machine  its  loss 
would  render  the  machinery  useless  until  it 
could  be  replaced.  So  many  a  person  loses 
a  good  position  by  lacking  self-control,  or  by 
some  little  habit  like  unpunctuality  or  care- 
lessness. Here  is  a  grain  of  sand.  It  is  so 
little  that  I  had  to  bring  a  handful  of  sand 
with  me  in  order  to  be  sure  of  showing  you 

122 


Little  Things  123 

one  grain.  Such  a  tiny  thing  seems  incapable 
of  doing  any  harm.  But  if  a  grain  of  sand 
becomes  lodged  in  a  person's  eye,  all  work, 
no  matter  how  important,  must  cease  until  it 
is  removed.  Here  is  a  drop  of  water.  An- 
other harmless  looking  little  thing.  But 
should  such  a  drop  fall  into  your  watch  it 
would  utterly  ruin  the  delicate  works.  Little 
faults  often  spoil  fine  characters.  We  some- 
times hear  such  remarks  as  these  :    **  He  is  a 

great  man  but "  or  "  How  charming  she 

would  be  if "     The  defect  is  usually  a 

small  one  but  it  mars  the  character.  How- 
ever, as  little  defects  are  harmful,  little  virtues 
are  correspondingly  helpful.  A  screw  like 
this,  when  well  fitted  into  place,  plays  its 
little  but  important  part  in  carrying  a  train 
load  of  people  safely  over  the  rails.  So  a 
faithful  boy  can  do  his  part  in  making  the 
wheels  of  a  great  business  concern  revolve 
smoothly.  This  grain  of  sand  lying  on  the 
ground  or  lifted  into  the  air  by  a  breeze, 
serves  its  tiny  part  in  breaking  up  a  sunbeam 
and  creating  colour  and  beauty  in  our  atmos- 
phere. So  the  cheerful  obedience  of  a  boy  or 
girl  can  brighten  up  the  atmosphere  of  the 
schoolroom  or  home.  A  drop  of  water  or 
dew  can  in  its  little  way  as  perfectly  reflect 
the  great  sun  as  can  the  beautiful  evening 


124       Experimental  Object  Lessons 

star,  which,  after  all,  is  only  our  sister  planet 
Venus,  dark  in  herself,  but  reflecting  the  sun 
in  such  beauty  that  she  is  loved  everywhere 
as  the  Morning  and  Evening  Star.  And  a 
little  child  can,  in  his  small  way,  reflect  the 
light  of  God  as  perfectly  as  can  the  greatest 
man  in  the  world.  When  you  go  home  if 
you  will  read  what  the  wise  Solomon  says 
in  Prov.  xxx.  24  to  29  about  four  little 
things  you  will  be  greatly  interested.  I  have 
here  two  glasses  of  water,  and  in  these  small 
vials  a  few  drops  of  liquid.  I  pour  from  the 
first  little  bottle  into  one  glass,  and  see,  how 
much  beauty  these  few  drops  add  to  the 
water  1  I  put  the  other  drops  into  the  second 
glass,  and  instantly  the  water  grows  black. 
The  so-called  little  things  of  life  are  much 
more  important  than  we  usually  deem  them. 
A  life  is  beautified  or  marred  by  them.  Here 
is  a  dish  of  water.  I  will  drop  this  litde  peb- 
ble in  the  middle  of  it.  Tiny  waves  start  at 
once  in  every  direction,  going  on  and  on  and 
never  ceasing  until  they  reach  the  edge  of  the 
dish.  So  a  small  act  or  word,  even  a  thought 
sometimes,  sends  out  waves  of  influence 
which  never  cease  until  the  end  of  time. 
Michael  Angelo  said,  "  Trifles  make  perfec- 
tion and  perfection  is  no  trifle,"  and  our  poet 
Longfellow  said : 


Little  Things  125 

**  True  worth  is  in  being,  not  seeming, 
In  doing  each  day  that  goes  by 
Some  little  good,  not  in  dreaming 
Of  great  things  to  do  by  and  by." 


XXXVII 

CONVERSION 

"  Therefore  if  any  man  be  in  Christ,  he  is  a  new  creature  ; 
old  things  are  passed  away  j  behold  all  things  are  become 
new." — 2  Cor.  v.  77, 

Materials:  A  saturated  solution  of  copper,  made  by  dis- 
solving  in  hot  water  as  much  sulphate  of  copper  as  the  water 
will  dissolve.     A  knife  having  an  iron  blade. 

You  have  often  heard  people  talk  about 
being  **  converted."  Do  you  find  it  hard  to 
understand  what  conversion  is  ?  Jesus  said, 
"  Verily  I  say  unto  you,  except  ye  be  con- 
verted, and  become  as  little  children,  ye  shall 
not  enter  into  the  kingdom  of  heaven" 
(Matt,  xviii.  3).  Since  it  is  so  necessary  for 
every  one  to  be  converted,  it  is  best  for  us  all 
to  understand  as  soon  as  possible  exactly 
what  conversion  is.  Very  little  children  are 
the  purest  beings  on  earth.  Can  you  tell  me 
why  ?  Yes,  because  they  have  never  sinned. 
Since  Jesus  says  that  we  must  become  as 
litde  children,  we  understand  that  we  must 
become  pure,  as  we  were  before  we  ever 
committed  a  sin.  A  person  who  wishes  to 
be  converted  has  only  three  things  to  do 
about  the  matter  himself,  and  then  God  at- 
126 


Conversion  '127 

tends  to  all  the  rest."  The  first  thing  is  to  re- 
pent of  sin  ;  that  is,  to  feel  very  sorry  for  ever 
having  been  sinful ;  so  sorry  that  one  is  will- 
ing to  turn  completely  away  from  all  evil  and 
determine  never  to  seek  sinful  things  again. 
The  next  thing  is  to  ask  God  for  forgiveness, 
and  the  third  and  last  thing  is  to  believe  that 
He  does  forgive.  We  cannot  see  into  our 
own  souls  and  watch  the  process  which  takes 
place.  Perhaps  after  we  finish  praying  for 
conversion  we  find  that  we  feel  very  much 
the  same  as  we  did  before  the  prayer,  and 
we  are  a  little  tempted  to  doubt  whether  any- 
thing has  happened  to  us  at  all  or  not.  But 
see  what  I  am  going  to  do  now.  I  will  put 
the  blade  of  my  knife  into  this  blue  water  for 
a  moment.  Now  look  at  it.  Is  it  just  as  it 
was  before  ?  No,  the  blade  which  before  was 
black  iron  is  now  bright  copper.  This 
coloured  water  had  power  to  draw  the  iron 
from  the  blade  and  replace  it  with  copper. 
It  was  done  so  quietly  and  quickly  that  if 
we  could  not  see  the  colour  of  the  copper 
on  the  blade  we  would  find  it  hard  to  believe 
that  it  had  been  done  at  all.  Conversions 
of  boys  and  girls  are  usually  quiet  and  quick, 
but  they  are  none  the  less  real.  Simply  be- 
cause some  older  people,  who  have  wan- 
dered very  far  away  from  God,  have  to  suffer 


128       Experimental  Object  Lessons 

a  great  deal  and  struggle  for  a  long  time 
belore  theyxare  converted,  and  then  perhaps 
have  a  wonderful  experience  to  relate,  do 
not  allow  yourselves  to  think  that  your  own 
quiet  conversion  was  not  fully  as  real  as 
theirs.  In  order  to  be  converted  and  enter 
the  kingdom  of  God,  one  needs  only  to  re- 
pent of  his  sins,  ask  God  to  forgive  them, 
then  believe  that  He  has  done  so,  and  the 
work  is  done  for  all  eternity.  Sin  will  come 
into  the  lives  again  many  times  after  that 
and  have  to  be  washed  away  by  Christ,  but 
after  being  converted  one  is  never  in  the 
old  unredeemed  state  of  sin  again  unless  he 
deliberately  chooses  to  withdraw  himself  from 
God  completely. 


XXXVIII 

THE  LEVER  OF  FAITH 

"AH  things  are  possible  to  him  that  believeth." — Mark 
ix.  23. 

Materials  :  A  book,  a  ruler  and  several  dollars,  or  weights 
of  some  kind. 

**  More  things  are  wrought  by  prayer  than 
the  world  dreams  of.'*  People  are  often  con- 
fronted by  tasks  which  look  gigantic  to  them, 
and  which  are  in  reality  far  too  great  for 
their  strength.  Sometimes  one  looks  at  a 
heavy  burden  which  must  be  lifted  and  car- 
ried through  life,  and  the  very  soul  shrinks  at 
the  thought  of  the  dreadful  weight  to  be 
borne.  Two  hundred  and  eighty-seven  years 
before  our  Saviour  came  to  the  earth,  a  wise 
man  by  the  name  of  Archimedes  discovered 
the  principle  of  the  lever.  Let  us  see  what 
that  is.  We  will  place  this  book  upright  on 
the  table  or  a  chair,  and  lay  a  ruler  across  it. 
We  find  that  there  is  one  point  at  which  the 
ruler  will  balance.  This  point  is  called  the 
fulcrum.  Now  we  will  put  a  dollar  on  each 
end  of  the  ruler  and  it  will  still  balance  at 
the  same  point.  But  if  we  put  two  dollars 
129 


130       Experimental  Object  Lessons 

on  one  end,  that  end  will  sink  at  once,  and 
to  make  it  balance  we  must  shift  the  ruler 
and  make  the  light  end  twice  as  long  as  the 
heavy  one,  because  the  heavy  end  has  twice 
the  weight  on  it.  If  we  put  three  dollars 
on  the  heavy  end,  we  must  again  lengthen 
the  light  end  until  it  is  three  times  the  length 
of  the  heavy  one.  And  so  we  may  go  on 
adding  dollars  and  lengthening  the  light  end 
of  the  ruler  until  the  heavy  end  is  quite  close 
to  the  fulcrum,  or  resting  point  of  the  ruler, 
and  still  the  one  weight  will  balance  all  the 
others.  The  principle  of  the  lever  is  of  great 
use  in  building.  A  heavy  stone  or  block  of 
marble  which  no  set  of  men  could  lift  by 
their  own  strength,  may  be  easily  raised  by 
fastening  it  to  the  short  end  of  the  lever,  and 
then  the  weight  of  the  men  at  the  other  end 
will  balance  it,  as  the  one  dollar  balances  all 
the  others  on  our  ruler.  Archimedes  indeed 
did  a  great  thing  for  the  world  when  he  gave 
to  it  the  principle  of  the  lever,  but  Jesus  gave 
a  grander  and  more  valuable  revelation  when 
He  told  His  disciples  about  the  mighty  lever 
of  faith.  Great  mountains.  He  said,  can  be 
removed  by  one  having  even  a  tiny  grain  of 
faith  (Matt.  xvii.  20 ;  Luke  xvii.  6 ;  Matt, 
xxi.  22).  People  who  see  before  them  in  the 
path   of  duty  tasks  which  are  beyond  their 


The  Lever  of  Faith  131 

own  strength  have  only  to  make  use  of  the 
great  lever  of  faith  in  God  and  they  will  find 
that  their  dreaded  tasks  can  be  accomplished 
easily  and  even  pleasantly.  People  who 
have  heavy  burdens  of  sickness  or  trouble  to 
bear  through  life  need  only  to  put  the  lever 
of  faith  beneath  the  trials  and  they  will  find 
not  only  the  burden  but  their  own  souls 
carried  happily  through  the  years.  This 
lever  of  faith  is  free  to  all,  and  those  who 
have  tried  it  testify  triumphantly  of  its  power, 
as  does  Paul,  for  instance,  when  he  says,  "  I 
can  do  all  things  through  Christ  which 
strengtheneth  me  "  (Phil.  iv.  13).  James  warns 
us  that  unless  we  use  this  lever  we  need  not 
expect  to  receive  anything  from  God  (James 
i.  6,  7),  and  Paul  also  tells  us  that  **  without 
faith  it  is  impossible  to  please  Him"  (Heb. 
xi.  6).  Since,  then,  this  lever  of  faith  is  such 
a  desirable  thing  to  have,  and  since  it  is  free 
to  all,  let  us  go  boldly  to  the  Throne  of  Grace 
and  ask  that  it  may  be  given  to  us  (Heb.  iv.  16). 


XXXIX 

OUR  FAITHFUL  TIMEKEEPER 

"  But,  beloved,  be  not  ignorant  of  this  one  thing,  that  one 
day  is  with  the  Lord  as  a  thousand  years,  and  a  thousand  years 
as  one  day." — 2  Peter  Hi,  8. 

Material :    A  watch. 

Would  you  like  to  see  my  watch  ?  Yes, 
it  is  pretty,  with  its  gold  case  and  dainty 
little  face.  Perhaps  you  would  be  surprised 
if  you  knew  how  many  lessons  we  can  learn 
from  a  watch.  As  you  pass  it  around  let  us 
talk  about  it. 

In  looking  at  a  watch  what  is  the  first 
thing  one  notices  ?  Yes,  the  case.  The 
merits  of  a  watch  are  sometimes  judged  by 
its  case.  Probably  most  of  you  have  gazed 
eagerly  into  a  jeweller's  show-window,  as  I 
did  when  I  was  a  little  girl,  and  imagined 
you  were  buying  a  watch  for  yourself.  If 
you  were  like  me,  you  chose  the  one  with 
the  prettiest  case.  It  is  often  the  same  way 
in  judging  people.  We  imagine  that  the 
fine  looking,  beautifully  dressed  folks  must 
be  the  best.  But  should  we  think  only  of  the 
case  in  choosing  a  watch  ?  Certainly  not. 
132 


Our  Faithful  Timekeeper  133 

The  most  beautiful  case  may  contain  inferior 
works  while  good  works  are  sometimes  en- 
closed in  plain  cases.  So  it  is  with  people. 
Some  of  the  most  beautiful  characters  in  the 
world  dwell  in  plain  and  even  unlovely 
bodies,  and  we  cannot  always  be  sure  that  a 
handsome  person's  mind  and  heart  corre- 
spond to  his  outward  appearance.  It  is  a 
great  pity  that  all  fine  appearing  people  can- 
not be  truly  noble  through  and  through. 
One  so  blessed  in  his  body  should  honour 
the  giver  of  it  by  making  it  a  fit  abode  for 
the  Holy  Spirit  (Rom.  xii.  i). 

Open  the  case  now  and  tell  me  what  you 
see.  Yes,  the  face.  Every  one  loves  a  pretty 
face.  Some  girls,  whose  looking-glasses  re- 
flect beauty,  become  vain  ;  while  others  fret 
themselves  because  they  are  dissatisfied  with 
the  image  that  looks  back  at  them  from  the 
mirror.  It  is  natural  to  love  beauty.  I  think 
that  God  Himself  delights  in  it  because  He 
has  made  such  marvellously  beautiful  things 
in  this  world,  and  has  told  us  of  such  glories 
to  come  in  the  next.  So  I  think  He  likes  to 
see  His  children  beautiful.  At  any  rate  He 
gives  us  all  a  chance  to  mould  our  own  faces. 
Are  you  surprised  to  hear  that?  Oh,  yes, 
we  have  a  large  share  in  making  our  faces 
either  beautiful  or  ugly  as  we  grow.     The 


134       Experimental  Object  Lessons 

girl  who  frets  and  becomes  discontented  as 
she  sees  her  plain  face  in  the  glass  is  lessen- 
ing her  chance  of  ever  becoming  beautiful, 
just  as  the  girl  who  allows  vanity  to  stamp 
itself  upon  her  features  is  destroying  her 
beauty.  Our  emotions  impress  themselves 
upon  our  faces.  The  most  beautiful  face  in 
the  world  will  be  marred  if  its  owner  allows 
selfishness,  ill-temper  and  pride  to  reign  in 
her  heart ;  while  a  plain  face  may  be  sweet- 
ened into  positive  beauty  as  it  reflects  the 
kindness  and  gentleness  of  a  loving  heart. 
The  cultivation  of  the  mind  also  lends  beauty 
to  a  face.  The  gift  of  beauty  should  be  ap- 
preciated when  possessed,  and  the  possessor 
should  pray  earnestly  to  be  delivered  from 
the  temptations  which  always  attack  beauty, 
and  strive  to  be  as  sweet  within  as  without 
(Prov.  xxxi.  30). 

Now  what  else  do  you  notice  on  the  watch  ? 
The  hands,  of  course.  How  useless  a  watch 
would  be  without  hands  I  And  how  useless 
you  and  I  would  be  without  our  hands. 
Most  girls  like  to  keep  their  hands  soft  and 
white,  and  some  are  afraid  of  brooms,  dish- 
pans  and  such  useful  articles  with  which  they 
can  do  so  much  to  lighten  mother's  burdens. 
Some  boys  are  afraid  that  handling  snow- 
shovels,    coal-scuttles    and   water   pails  will 


Our  Faithful  Timekeeper  135 

coarsen  their  hands  so  that  they  cannot  play 
well  upon  their  violins,  guitars  and  mando- 
lins or  work  well  at  their  delicate  wood-carv- 
ing and  such  things.  The  hands  on  our 
watch  are  fine  and  beautiful,  but  of  how 
much  value  would  they  be  to  the  watch  if 
they  performed  no  work  but  existed  only  as 
ornaments  ?  Let  us  take  a  lesson  from  these 
busy  hands  as  they  unceasingly  perform 
their  work,  and  let  us  do  with  our  hands 
heartily  all  that  we  ought  to  do  (Eccl.  ix.  10). 

Is  there  not  another  hand  on  the  watch  ? 
Yes,  the  second  hand.  How  rapidly  it  flies 
around  !  Sixty  times  as  fast  as  the  minute 
hand  and  three  thousand  six  hundred  times 
as  fast  as  the  hour  hand.  Just  so  our  days 
fly  past  us  ;  and  if  our  months  and  years  are 
to  be  successful  we  must  keep  our  days  full 
of  activity  (Eccl.  xii.  i). 

Since  we  can  see  the  face  and  hands  so 
plainly  why  can  we  not  touch  them  ?  Yes, 
they  are  covered  by  a  crystal.  That  glass 
reminds  us  of  the  providence  of  God.  We 
may  sometimes  look  wistfully  out  of  our  own 
corner,  away  from  our  own  work,  into  farther 
fields.  We  may  stretch  out  our  hands  and 
long  to  be  away,  but  an  invisible  something 
shuts  us  in.  We  can  see  through  it  but 
when  we  try  to  pass  we  are  restrained  and 


136       Experimental  Object  Lessons 

kept  in  our  own  place,  at  our  own  work. 
The  providence  of  God,  while  it  seems  to  re- 
strict us,  yet  protects  us.  This  crystal  keeps 
dust  and  other  harmful  things  away  from  the 
face  of  the  watch  and  protects  the  hands  from 
accidents.  So  there  is  an  invisible  Presence 
before  the  Christian,  protecting  him  from 
evil.  As  long  as  he  is  content  to  remain 
behind  it  he  is  safe  (Ps.  v.  12). 

Now  let  us  open  the  back  of  the  watch. 
Here  are  kept  the  works.  Neither  you  nor  I 
know  much  about  these  curious  little  wheels. 
We  only  know  that  as  long  as  they  are  all 
right  our  watch  keeps  good  time,  but  if  they 
are  out  of  order  our  watch  goes  wrong. 
Neither  do  we  understand  the  inner  work- 
ings of  our  own  minds  and  hearts.  But  we 
can  see  that  if  they  are  right  our  lives  follow 
truth  while  if  they  are  wrong  our  actions  are 
correspondingly  wrong.  When  anything  is 
the  matter  with  my  watch  what  do  I  do  ? 
Mend  it  ?  Oh,  no,  I  cannot  do  that  because 
I  do  not  know  how  watches  are  made.  I 
must  take  it  to  a  watchmaker  who  under- 
stands such  things.  So  when  anything  goes 
wrong  with  our  spiritual  life  we  should  not 
try  to  help  ourselves  nor  to  get  help  from 
other  human  beings.  The  only  one  who 
perfectly  understands  us  is  He  who  made  us 


Our  Faithful  Timekeeper  137 

— God.  Let  us  go  to  Him  with  our  troubles 
and  He  will  set  us  right  (Prov.  xx.  24). 

Every  watch,  even  when  it  is  in  good  run- 
ning condition,  needs  to  be  taken  often  to  a 
good  jeweller  for  a  thorough  cleaning.  In 
the  same  way  we  need  to  go  often  to  our 
Maker  to  have  the  dust  of  worldliness  cleaned 
away  from  our  hearts  (Ps.  xix.  12). 

Now  is  there  anything  else  which  you 
notice  particularly  about  the  watch  ?  Why, 
certainly,  the  ticking.  One  becomes  so  ac- 
customed to  the  ticking  of  a  watch  or  clock 
that  he  seldom  notices  it  unless  it  stops.  So, 
often,  children  become  so  accustomed  to 
hearing  words  of  love  and  good  advice  from 
their  parents  and  teachers  that  they  make 
little,  if  any,  impression  upon  their  minds. 
But  how  sad  would  be  the  silence  if  the  voices 
should  suddenly  cease.  Instead  of  letting 
these  voices  fall  upon  deaf  ears  let  us  take 
example  from  them,  and  begin,  in  our  turn, 
to  use  our  own  voices  for  good  (Prov.  iv.  i). 

What  is  a  watch  for  ?  Yes,  to  tell  us  the 
time.  Are  watches  always  perfectly  true  in 
this  respect?  No,  sometimes  they  are  too 
fast  and  sometimes  too  slow.  What  must 
be  done  then  ?  They  must  be  regulated. 
Some  of  us  are  by  nature  inclined  to  be  too 
slow.     How  aggravating  is  the  person  who 


138       Experimental  Object  Lessons 

is  always  late  in  keeping  an  appointment,  al- 
ways late  to  school,  always  late  for  breakfast 
and  who  usually  takes  twice  the  time  neces- 
sary for  doing  a  piece  of  work  (Heb.  vi.  1 1, 12). 
On  the  other  hand  how  annoying  is  the  per- 
son who  rushes  headlong  into  every  enter- 
prise without  waiting  to  count  the  cost. 
Who  hurries  over  his  work  so  that  it  is  not 
well  done,  and  who  does  a  thing  first  and 
stops  to  think  about  it  afterwards  (Prov. 
xix.  2).  It  is  best  to  be  neither  too  fast  nor 
too  slow  but  to  be  regulated  according  to 
common  sense. 

Now  our  watch  has  told  us  many  things 
and  we  will  close  it  and  put  it  away,  where 
it  will  go  on  ticking  away  the  time.  It  seems 
to  warn  us  not  to  waste  the  precious  minutes 
for  we  can  never  regain  them  after  they  have 
once  passed  from  us.  As  the  watch  ticks, 
the  seconds  fly,  and  so  go  on  the  days, 
months  and  years  until  finally  time  will  cease 
and  eternity  will  begin. 


XL 

GETTING  VS.  GIVING 

"  Freely  ye  have  received,  freely  give." — Matt,  x.  8, 
Materials  :    A  sponge.     Some  water  in  a  basin.    A  candle. 

Away  down  in  the  deep  waters  of  the 
oceans  and  of  some  great  lakes  are  found 
certain  curious  things  clinging  to  rocks  and 
shells.  These  are  torn  off  and  brought  to 
the  surface  where  they  are  cleaned  and  dried 
and  sent  to  stores  for  sale.  Certainly  you 
have  all  seen  some  of  them  and  probably 
used  one.  Can  you  guess  what  they  are? 
Yes,  you  have  it;  they  are  sponges.  We 
have  one  here.  Let  us  put  it  in  this  basin  of 
water  and  see  how  much  it  will  absorb. 
How  fast  the  water  disappears.  It  would 
probably  take  up  still  more  if  we  had  it  here 
to  give.  Have  you  ever  heard  people  called 
**  sponges  "  ?  I  should  not  like  to  be  called  a 
sponge,  would  you?  It  seems  to  indicate 
something  so  greedy ;  like  the  people  who 
take  all  the  good  things  of  life  for  themselves 
and  never  give  to  others.  Always  taking  in 
and  taking  in  and  never  giving  anything  out 
unless  forced  to  do  so.  Some  boys  and  girls 
139 


140       Experimental  Object  Lessons 

go  to  school  and  learn  all  they  can  but  are 
never  willing  to  help  little  brother  and  sister 
with  their  lessons.  Some  take  all  the  musical 
instruction  they  can  get  but  are  always  too 
busy  to  play  and  sing  for  father  and  mother. 
Some  enjoy  a  pleasure  trip  but  bring  no  in- 
teresting descriptions  back  to  the  home  circle. 
Some  attend  Sunday-school  and  children's 
or  young  people's  meetings  but  never  help 
out  by  using  their  voices  in  song  or  in  giving 
a  helpful  illustration  or  thought  on  the  lesson. 
Always  receiving  but  never  giving  out,  like  a 
sponge.  I  think  we  would  all  prefer  to  re- 
semble something  else  rather  than  a  sponge. 
Now  what  do  you  think  we  could  put  before 
us  to-day  that  would  teach  us  of  better  things 
than  the  sponge  suggests?  Well,  how  will 
this  do?  (Set  out  the  candle  and  light  it.) 
Oh,  yes,  you  see  the  point  at  once.  A  candle 
is  always  giving  out  something.  With  all  its 
little  might  it  is  pouring  forth  light  and  heat. 
Neither  reach  very  far  because  the  candle  is 
so  small,  but  we  do  not  think  of  that  but  only 
see  the  motive.  We  would  far  rather  be  like 
the  little  candle  as  it  gives  out  its  light  and 
heat  than  like  the  big  fat  sponge  sitting  there 
holding  all  it  has  received  and  ready  to  take 
in  more  as  soon  as  it  is  offered.  Can  we 
make  the  sponge  give  up  anything  ?   (Squeeze 


Getting  vs.  Giving  141 

it.)  Oh,  certainly,  if  we  force  it  to  do  so,  just 
as  most  people  can  be  coaxed  and  urged  and 
pressed  until  finally  they  respond.  Some  one 
says  that  our  candle  is  burning  itself  all  away. 
That  is  true.  A  minister,  teacher  or  any 
earnest  Christian  worker  will  tell  you  that  his 
work  leaves  him  exhausted ;  that  he  really 
gives  a  part  of  his  very  life  as  he  shines  for 
Jesus.  But  Christians  are  different  from 
candles  in  one  way.  God  makes  up  to  them 
all  they  give  out,  building  them  up  again 
and  making  them  stronger  than  they  were 
before.  Even  if  this  were  not  so,  would  we 
not  still  prefer  to  resemble  the  candle  rather 
than  the  sponge,  and  to  give  out  good  in- 
stead of  only  absorbing  it  ?  It  is  better  to 
live  a  few  years  usefully  than  many  years 
selfishly. 


XLI 

TALENTS 

"  Now  there  are  diversities  of  gifts,  but  the  same  Spirit." — 
z  Cor.  xii.  4. 

Materials  :  Purchase  a  few  cents'  worth  each  of  perchloride 
of  iron,  sulphate  of  copper  and  sulphate  of  zinc,  also  a  few  grains 
of  ferrocyanide  of  potassium.  Make  weak  solutions  of  the  three 
first  mentioned  chemicals  and  put  them  in  small  bottles.  Dis- 
solve some  of  the  ferrocyanide  of  potassium  in  a  glass  cream 
pitcher  of  water.     Have  with  you  three  small  wine  glasses. 

What  is  your  particular  talent  ?  Oh,  now 
don't  shake  your  heads  and  say  that  you  have 
none.  Perhaps  you  and  I  do  not  possess  ex- 
actly the  kind  of  talents  we  should  like  best, 
but  our  heavenly  Father  has  given  all  His 
children  some  gift  by  which  they  can  glorify 
Him.  Sometimes  it  takes  a  long  time  for 
one  to  make  up  his  mind  what  his  talents 
are,  and  some  people  never  take  the  trouble 
to  do  so.  If  we  can  see  no  decided  sign  of 
brilliancy  in  ourselves  we  are  too  apt  to  con- 
clude that  we  are  not  talented  at  all.  But,  as 
some  writer  has  said, 

**  God  gives  us  each  some  small  sweet  way 
To  set  the  world  rejoicing." 
^  142 


^^'^; 


Talents  143 

Do  you  see  these  little  glasses?  They  all 
look  alike,  do  they  not  ?  I  am  going  to  make 
them  differ  a  little  now  to  remind  us  that  no 
two  people  in  all  the  world  are  alike.  (Rinse 
out  the  three  glasses,  one  with  the  iron,  one 
with  the  copper,  and  one  with  the  zinc,  so 
that  a  few  drops  of  each  remain  in  the  glasses.) 
I  will  pour  some  water  from  this  pitcher  into 
each  glass.  Now  how  does  the  water  look, 
all  the  same  colour  ?  No,  one  glass  contains 
blue  water,  one  reddish-brown  and  the  other 
milky  white.  Yet  the  water  from  the  pitcher 
was  all  clear  white.  Into  every  heart  which 
will  receive  Him,  God  pours  the  Holy  Spirit. 
It  is  the  same  Spirit  in  every  case,  but  in  each 
life  He  is  manifested  in  a  different  way,  just 
as  the  water  from  the  pitcher  was  all  clear 
white,  but  in  each  glass  it  showed  a  different 
colour.  As  soon  as  some  people  are  con- 
verted they  show  a  decided  talent  for  testi- 
mony; some  are  specially  gifted  in  prayer, 
others  are  enabled  to  preach  and  some  are 
very  successful  in  teaching.  Some  use  their 
voices  to  sing  God's  praise,  and  some  show 
great  artistic  talent.  Which  glass  of  water 
do  you  think  the  prettiest  ?  The  blue  ?  Yes, 
the  others  are  not  nearly  so  attractive.  If 
we  were  to  choose  one  glass  it  would  surely 
be  the  blue.     So,  often,  when  we  see  people 


144       Experimental  Object  Lessons 

in  possession  of  brilliant  talents  we  think  that 
if  we  only  had  such  gifts  as  they  we  should 
be  only  too  glad  to  use  them  for  God,  and 
our  own  homely  talents  seem  poor  and  com- 
mon to  us,  and  we  are  tempted  to  neglect 
using  them.  Where  did  the  blue  water  come 
from?  Yes,  from  the  pitcher.  And  where 
did  we  get  the  brown  and  milky  white  water 
from  ?  From  the  same  source.  So  the  com- 
monplace talent  one  young  girl  has  for  influ- 
encing in  a  good  way  her  little  brothers  and 
sisters,  and  of  brightening  up  her  home, 
comes  from  the  same  source  that  the  talent 
for  music  came  with  which  some  other  girl 
can  hold  and  sway  an  audience.  The  talent 
for  patient,  earnest  work  which  some  boys 
exhibit  in  forming  a  literary  club  or  mission 
class,  or  which  some  fatherless  boys  show  in 
caring  for  their  widowed  mothers,  is  as  truly 
from  God  as  the  talent  which  enables  another 
young  man  to  paint  a  picture  which  brings 
to  him  fame  and  honour.  Did  you  notice  as 
we  made  our  experiment  that  it  was  the  glass 
which  was  rinsed  out  with  the  blue  liquid 
which  contained  the  brown  water  when  filled 
from  the  pitcher,  and  the  glass  which  had 
been  rinsed  with  the  brown  liquid,  and  which 
we  would  naturally  expect  to  show  a  brown 
colour  when  filled,  was  the  one  which  gave 


Talents  145 

us  the  blue  water?  (If  all  did  not  observe 
this,  perform  the  experiment  again.)  I  can- 
not explain  it ;  I  only  know  that  people  often 
surprise  us  in  the  same  way.  A  rough-look- 
ing man,  of  whom  one  would  almost  feel 
afraid,  often  has  one  of  the  softest,  tenderest 
hearts  in  the  world.  Sometimes  a  person 
who  has  been  credited  with  but  few  natural 
gifts,  when  inspired  by  the  Holy  Spirit,  ex- 
hibits talents  of  surprising  brilliancy,  while 
others,  of  whom  much  is  expected,  sometimes 
disappoint  their  friends. 

How  can  you  tell  what  your  talents  are  ? 
The  best  way  to  do  when  undecided  as  to 
this,  is  to  try  faithfully  and  heartily  whatever 
work  you  find  to  do,  and  when  you  find  some 
particular  thing  in  which  you  take  a  deep 
interest  and  which  you  can  do  exceptionally 
well,  it  is  usually  safe  to  conclude  that  you 
have  a  talent  for  that  particular  kind  of  work. 
It  may  not  be  what  you  expected  to  do,  nor 
the  kind  of  work  your  friends  look  for  from 
you,  but  with  God  for  your  guide  you  cannot 
make  many  great  mistakes  in  choosing  your 
work. 


XLII 

INFLUENCE 

"  Destroy  not  him  with  thy  meat  for  whom  Christ  died." — 
Rom.  xiv.  75. 

Materials :  Two  corks.  A  dish  of  water.  A  penknife. 
A  candle.  A  pasteboard  box  having  a  tight  cover.  Remove 
one  end  of  the  box  and  sew  in  its  place  a  stout  piece  of  canvas. 
Cut  a  round  hole  in  the  opposite  end. 

Soon  after  the  Christian  church  was  started 
disputes  arose  concerning  the  use  of  meats 
which  had  been  offered  to  idols.  Some  of 
the  Christians  beheved  that  by  eating  these 
meats  they  were,  in  a  way,  partaking  in  the 
worship  of  idols  themselves,  while  others  were 
able  to  realize  that  they  were  neither  better 
nor  worse  for  the  eating,  and  so  took  no 
particular  care  in  the  matter.  Paul  wrote 
wisely  and  kindly  to  these  careless  people, 
explaining  to  them  that  although  some 
things  were  perfectly  right  they  were  not 
always  best,  and  that  since  eating  meat 
which  had  been  offered  to  idols  might  cause 
some  people  to  sin,  it  would  be  better  for 
them  to  deny  themselves  so  they  might  be 
perfectly  sure  that  their  influence  would  not 
146 


Influence  147 

harm  any  one  else.  Opinions  differ  among 
Christians  to-day  just  as  they  did  in  those 
days,  and  it  is  as  necessary  for  us  to  consider 
our  influence  as  it  was  for  the  people  to  whom 
Paul  wrote.  You  have  no  influence?  Oh, 
indeed  you  have.  No  one  is  without  it. 
Look  at  these  two  corks.  Would  you  think 
that  one  of  them  could  lead  the  other  around 
as  though  it  were  a  magnet  ?  We  will  drop 
them  in  the  water,  and  when  they  are  ap- 
proached within  a  certain  distance  of  each 
other  they  rush  together.  Now  I  will  fix  the 
blade  of  my  knife  in  one,  and  see,  I  can  lead 
the  other  all  around  through  the  water.  So 
people  are  influenced  and  led  by  one  another. 
It  is  often  hard  for  a  broad-minded,  strong 
Christian  to  restrain  himself  from  doing 
something  which  he  knows  would  not  hurt 
him  but  which  might  harm  a  weaker  person. 
The  weaker  person  would  not  have  to  follow 
his  example,  you  say  ?  That  is  very  true, 
but  the  power  of  influence  is  very  strong, 
and  since  it  is  invisible  one  never  can  tell 
in  what  direction  it  will  travel  or  whom  it 
will  reach.  We  will  light  this  candle.  (Place 
the  candle  in  front  of  the  round  opening  of 
the  box,  at  a  little  distance  from  it.)  Now  it 
is  burning  brightly.  (Press  on  the  canvas 
back  of  the  box  and  a  puff  of  air  will  ex- 


148       Experimental  Object  Lessons 

tinguish  the  flame.)  Why  did  our  candle  go 
out  ?  Yes,  I  pushed  the  back  of  this  box, 
but  did  you  see  anything  touch  the  candle  ? 
No,  the  light  was  affected  by  an  unseen  in- 
fluence from  the  box  just  as  the  hope  and 
faith  of  many  a  soul  has  been  affected  by  the 
unseen  influence  of  some  other  person.  The 
air  from  the  box  was  pure  and  good  in  itself 
but  it  had  a  disastrous  effect  upon  the 
candle's  light.  So  certain  actions  may  be 
right  in  themselves  and  yet  cast  a  bad  in- 
fluence. For  instance,  one  person  may  be  so 
constituted  that  he  can  worship  God  better 
by  spending  a  Sunday  morning  alone  in  the 
woods,  among  the  birds  and  flowers,  than  he 
can  by  listening  to  a  sermon  in  church.  For 
him  to  do  this  would  be  perfectly  right, 
except  for  the  fact  that  his  influence  might 
keep  away  from  the  house  of  God  some 
person  who  was  not  in  close  harmony  with 
nature,  which  would  probably  result  in  such 
a  one  losing  interest  in  the  things  of  the 
kingdom.  We  can't  be  expected  to  give  up 
doing  things  we  like  to  do  just  because  it 
might  be  bad  for  some  one  else  to  do  those 
things  ?  I  know  it  is  hard,  but  are  you  per- 
fectly sure  that  God  does  not  expect  it  of  us  ? 
The  Bible  says,  **  Let  no  man  put  a  stum- 
bling  block   or    an    occasion    to    fall   in   a 


Influence  149 

brother's  way  "  (Rom.  xiv.  13),  and  "  Let  not 
your  good  be  evil  spoken  of  "  (Rom.  xiv.  16). 
We  are  told  that  '*  even  Christ  pleased  not 
Himself "  (Rom.  xv.  3),  and  since  God  has 
bestowed  upon  us  the  wonderful  power  of 
influencing  our  fellow  men,  how  careful  we 
ought  to  be  that  our  influence  should  be  for 
good  and  not  for  evil. 

Note.  By  putting  inside  of  the  box  some  pieces  of  a  joss- 
stick,  or  anything  which  will  cause  a  smoke  without  setting  the 
box  on  fire,  smoke  rings  may  be  sent  from  the  opening  of  the 
box.  The  smoke  rings  will  put  out  the  candle  as  the  invisible 
air  rings  do.  Smoke  rings  sent  along  a  beam  of  sunhght  or 
electric  light  are  beautiful,  and  may  be  used  to  represent  the 
beauty  of  a  good  influence. 


XLIII 

A  WORD  FOR  JESUS 

"A  word  spoken  in  due  season,  how  good  is  it." — Profv. 
XV.  23. 

Materials  :  A  crystal  of  hyposulphite  of  soda  tied  to  a  thread. 
A  glass  containing  a  solution  made  by  dissolving  six  tablespoons 
of  hyposulphite  of  soda  crystals  in  two  tablespoons  of  boiling 
water.  Hyposulphite  of  soda  will  not  remain  in  a  solution  more 
than  an  hour  or  two,  so  this  liquid  must  not  be  prepared  long 
before  it  is  to  be  used. 

One  of  the  hardest  things  for  most  young 
Christians  to  do  is  to  speak  to  their  friends 
about  the  things  of  God.  This  reticence  is 
often  laid  to  cowardice  and  sometimes  one  is 
accused  of  being  ashamed  of  the  Lord  Jesus. 
This,  however,  is  not  usually  the  case.  One's 
religious  feelings  and  experiences  are  the 
most  sacred  things  in  life,  and  it  is  for  this 
reason  that  it  is  so  hard  to  express  them  in 
ordinary  words  and  on  ordinary  occasions. 
They  are  deep  in  the  heart  and  it  requires  a 
great  effort  to  bring  them  forward.  If,  how- 
ever, one  could  be  perfecdy  certain  that  his 
words  would  be  helpful  the  speaking  would 
be  easier.  People  are  too  apt  to  think  that 
their  words  are  useless.  They  may  be  par- 
150 


A  Word  For  Jesus  151 

ticularly  anxious  for  the  conversion  of  some 
special  friend,  but  if  they  see  no  indications 
of  spiritual  longings  in  that  friend  they  con- 
clude that  so  small  a  thing  as  a  word  from 
them  would  be  useless,  and  so  refrain  from 
speaking  that  word.  But  one  can  never  fore- 
know the  effect  of  a  little  word  for  Jesus. 
Here  is  a  clear  liquid.  I  will  drop  into  it 
this  crystal,  holding  it  by  the  thread.  The 
crystal  is  a  little  thing,  but  see  the  effect  it  is 
instantly  having  upon  the  water.  Beautiful 
crystals  are  forming  and  clinging  to  the  one 
on  the  thread.  They  rapidly  increase  until 
now  we  see  all  the  water  in  the  glass  crystal- 
lized into  a  solid  mass.  So,  often,  it  needs 
only  one  word  from  a  friend  to  crystallize  the 
good  resolutions  which  are  in  a  heart,  and 
for  the  lack  of  one  word  of  help  and  encour- 
agement many  a  soul  remains  forever  out  of 
Christ.  But  sometimes,  you  say,  words  are 
spoken  for  Jesus  which  have  no  effect  what- 
ever ?  Nothing  is  without  its  effect.  Many, 
many  crystals  such  as  the  one  on  the  thread 
had  to  be  dissolved  in  this  water  before  it 
reached  such  a  condition  that  the  last  crystal 
would  solidify  it,  and  there  must  be  many 
and  many  a  word  for  Jesus  received  into  a 
soul  before  the  last  one  comes  which  crys- 
tallizes all  into  a  firm  decision.     When  our 


152       Experimental  Object  Lessons 

words  seemingly  fail  to  make  any  impression 
whatever,  let  us  remember  that  they  may  at 
least  help  to  bring  the  soul  to  whom  they  are 
spoken  into  such  a  condition  that  a  word 
from  some  one  else  will  bring  the  desired 
result. 


XLIV 

FRUIT  BEARING 

"  Herein  is  My  Father  glorified,  that  ye  bear  much  fruit ;  so 
shall  ye  be  My  disciples." — John  xv.  8. 

Materials  :  A  fruit  basket  containing  an  orange,  an  apple, 
a  handful  of  figs  and  a  bunch  of  grapes.     A  fruit-knife. 

Judging  from  the  looks  of  this  fruit  basket, 
we  are  going-  to  have  a  delightful  lesson 
to-day.  Do  you  think  it  will  spoil  your  ap- 
petites for  dinner  if  you  taste  this  fruit  ?  I 
hardly  think  it  will ;  at  any  rate,  we  will  risk 
it.  Yes,  indeed,  the  fruit  looks  pretty.  How 
good  it  is  of  God  to  make  everything  that 
grows  for  us  to  eat  so  beautiful.  Everything  ? 
Why,  certainly.  Can  you  think  of  anything 
from  the  garden  or  orchard  that  is  not  beau- 
tiful ?  The  next  time  you  help  mother  get 
dinner,  notice  the  cabbage  she  cuts  apart, 
the  colour  of  the  beets  and  radishes,  the 
pretty  way  the  pearly  ears  of  corn  are  wrapped 
in  softest  silk  and  covered  with  pale  green 
leaves ;  and  notice  the  tomatoes  and  onions 
as  they  are  sliced.  If  you  find  anything 
growing  for  us  to  eat  which  is  not  beautiful, 
tell  me  next  Sunday.  The  Bible  says,  "  He 
153 


154       Experimental  Object  Lessons 

hath  made  everything  beautiful  in  His  time  " 
(Eccl.  iii.  ii). 

See  this  bright  golden  orange.  We  will 
open  it  and  see  how  wonderfully  it  is  ar- 
ranged inside.  Now  let  us  each  take  one  of 
these  little  sections  and  admire  as  we  taste  it. 
Our  bodies  are  so  constituted  that  in  order 
to  be  kept  alive  and  healthy  they  must  be 
fed.  How  thankful  we  ought  to  be  that  the 
things  provided  for  our  use  are  made  beau- 
tiful and  pleasant  to  both  eyes  and  palate. 
God  might  have  made  all  things  taste  and 
look  alike  to  us,  and  then  how  much  pleasure 
we  should  have  missed. 

Let  us  cut  this  apple.  Can  you  tell  me 
what  kind  of  fruit  it  was  that  God  forbade 
Adam  and  Eve  to  eat  in  the  Garden  of  Eden  ? 
Ah,  I  knew  you  would  all  say  apples.  Now 
suppose  you  turn  to  the  third  chapter  of 
Genesis  and  see  if  you  are  right.  No,  apples 
are  not  mentioned  at  all.  Well,  your  mistake 
is  one  that  is  made  by  most  people,  but  you 
will  know  better  now.  The  apple  tree  is 
very  rare  in  the  East,  and  apples  are  men- 
tioned only  twice,  I  think,  in  the  Bible,  and 
in  both  cases  it  is  thought  that  the  citron  is 
the  fruit  meant. 

Here  is  a  kind  of  fruit  (figs)  which  is  often 
mentioned   in  the   Scriptures.     Jesus   some- 


Fruit  Bearing  15^ 

times  used  natural  objects  to  impress  great 
moral  truths  on  the  minds  of  His  disciples. 
He  wished  them  to  understand  that  the  life 
of  every  Christian  ought  to  be  like  a  tree  or 
vine  and  bear  fruits  of  love,  joy,  peace,  gen- 
tleness, faith  and  other  virtues  (Gal.  v.  22), 
just  as  a  tree  or  vine  bears  fruit.     He  said 
that  in  order  to  bear  good  fruit  we  must  be 
good  people  because  good  trees  always  bear 
good  fruit  and  bad  trees  cannot  bear  any- 
thing but  bad  fruit  (Matt.  vii.  16  to  19),  and 
people  are  like  trees  in  that  respect.     One 
day  when  Jesus  was  hungry  and  tired  He  came 
to  a  fig  tree,  but  found  no  fruit  on  it ;  noth- 
ing but  leaves.     A  fig  tree  is  peculiar  in  one 
way.     The  fruit  shoots  forth  from  it  without 
the  appearance  of  a  blossom  and  even  before 
the  leaves  appear.     So  when  one  sees  a  fig 
tree  with  leaves,  but  without  fruit,  he  may 
know  that  it  is  barren  for  that  season.     Jesus 
said  to  the  tree,  "  Let  no  fruit  grow  on  thee 
henceforward  forever,"  and  presently  the  fig 
tree  withered  away.     Jesus  expects  His  fol- 
lowers to  bear  fruit  just  as  He  expects  trees 
to  do  so  and  will  be  as  much  displeased  when 
they  fail  as  He  was  when  the  fig  tree  failed. 
Of  course  He  knows  how  hard  it  is  for  us  to 
bear  such  fruits  as  meekness,  long  suffering, 
patience,  etc.,  and  so  He  helps  us.     See  this 


156       Experimental  Object  Lessons 

beautiful  bunch  of  grapes  ?  If  the  gardener 
who  raised  them  had  not  taken  great  pains 
with  his  vines  we  should  not  have  been  able 
to  enjoy  such  delicious  fruit.  The  land  where 
Jesus  lived  was  excellent  for  vineyards,  and 
the  grapes  grown  there  are  much  larger  and 
finer  than  those  we  have  here.  One  day 
Jesus  was  having  an  earnest  talk  with  His 
disciples  and  He  used  a  grape  vine  for  an  il- 
lustration (John  XV.  I  to  9).  He  said  that  He 
was  like  the  vine  and  His  followers  like  the 
branches.  Suppose  that  when  this  bunch  of 
grapes  had  just  commenced  to  grow  the 
branch  upon  which  it  was  growing  had  be- 
come broken  off  from  the  vine,  what  would 
have  happened  ?  Yes,  the  branch  would 
have  died  and  the  grapes  with  it.  Where 
must  a  branch  be  if  it  is  to  bear  fruit  ?  Yes, 
on  the  vine.  It  needs  the  sap  that  flows  up- 
ward from  the  root  and  circulates  all  through 
the  vine  and  its  branches.  So  if  a  Christian 
wants  to  bear  fruit  he  must  be  so  close  to 
Christ  that  he  is  really  a  part  of  Him,  and 
can  feel  the  life  and  love  of  God  flowing 
through  his  heart.  Jesus  says,  "  Without  Me 
ye  can  do  nothing "  (John  xv.  5).  When 
one  does  abide  in  Christ,  God  the  Father 
helps  in  a  way  which  is  sometimes  painful, 
but  which,  if  endured  well,  makes  one  capable 


Fruit  Bearing  157 

of  bearing  much  fruit.  Did  you  ever  hear 
of  pruning?  Perhaps  you  have  sometimes 
pruned  your  rose-bushes.  People  who  raise 
grapes  have  to  prune  their  vines  often  if  they 
want  them  to  bear  well.  Yes,  pruning  is 
trimming  or  cutting.  If  a  gardener  allowed 
his  vines  to  grow  as  they  liked  their  strength 
would  be  spent  in  the  growth  of  long,  useless 
shoots,  so  he  trims,  and  cuts,  and  keeps  them 
in  order,  and  his  care  is  rewarded  by  a  fine 
crop  of  fruit.  So  God  prunes  His  human 
branches,  trimming  and  restraining  them  ac- 
cording to  His  divine  wisdom.  He  knows 
that  even  though  the  process  is  a  painful  one, 
it  is  only  for  a  short  time,  as  He  counts  time, 
that  we  must  endure  the  pain  and  He  wants 
us  to  make  a  strong,  sturdy  growth  here  be- 
fore He  transplants  us  to  His  heavenly  land. 
He  wants  us  to  bear  the  "  fruit  of  righteous- 
ness," and  pruning  is  often  necessary  in  order 
to  bring  forth  that  fruit  (Heb.  xii.  11).  Never 
think  when  pain  and  trouble  come  to  you 
that  God  is  angry  or  does  not  love  you.  He 
loves  you  more  than  ever  at  such  times  and 
is  only  cultivating  your  character.  The  pain 
which  you  suffer  from  His  training  will  not 
last  long,  and  will  result  in  making  you 
stronger  and  better  and  capable  of  bearing 
fruit  for  eternal  life. 


XLV 
INVISIBLE  WRITING 

In  teaching  a  lesson  interest  may  often  be 
heightened  by  the  use  of  invisible  ink.  Have 
a  large  piece  of  white  paper  and  before  com- 
ing to  the  class  write  the  words  which  you 
wish  to  have  invisible  with  a  clean  pen  dipped 
in  a  solution  of  ferrocyanide  of  potassium. 
In  the  class,  as  the  lesson  proceeds,  write 
whatever  you  wish  with  a  pencil  or  pen  and 
at  the  proper  time  brush  over  the  invisible 
writing  with  a  soft  cloth  dipped  in  a  solution 
of  perchloride  of  iron  and  it  will  appear  in 
blue  with  a  yellow  background.  Or  brush  it 
over  with  a  solution  of  sulphate  of  copper  and 
it  will  be  developed  in  a  reddish  chocolate 
colour.  Should  you  write  with  a  solution  of 
iodide  of  potassium  and  develop  with  a  solu- 
tion of  corrosive  sublimate  your  writing 
would  appear  in  scarlet.  Pictures  can  be 
drawn  effectively  in  this  way.  For  instance, 
a  group  of  shepherds  watching  their  sheep 
may  be  drawn  in  the  ordinary  way  and  the 
Christmas  star  and  vision  of  angels  with  in- 
visible ink.  Or  Jacob  sleeping  with  a  stone 
158 


Invisible  Writing  159 

for  his  pillow  in  pencil  work,  and  the  ladder 
and  angels  in  invisible  ink.  Sometimes  it  is 
interesting  to  write,  as  the  lesson  proceeds,  a 
list  of  the  persecutions  or  trials  endured  by 
the  hero  of  the  lesson  story,  and  on  the  op- 
posite half  of  the  paper  develop  a  list,  pre- 
pared beforehand  in  invisible  writing,  of  his 
compensations.  Many  such  ways  of  using 
invisible  ink  will  occur  to  the  teacher,  sug- 
gested by  the  Sunday-school  lessons. 


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